meadowsmp pastures 



JOSEPH E.WING 




Class 
Book 






Copyright ]^^. 



COPYRIGHT DEPOSnV 



MEADOWS 



AND 



PASTURES 



By JOSEPH E. WING 

Staff Correspondent of The Breeder's Gazette 



f't^f'lO 



Chicag-o: 

The Breeder's Gazette 

1911 



^^^ :^^ 



Copyrighted, 1911, 

BY SANDERS PUBLISHING CO. 

All lights reserved. 



• • > 



$ I. SO 



LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. 

..^^ PAGE 

"Where the Author Lives and this Book Was Written" 2 

Timothy (Phleum pratense) 24 

Effect of Time of Cutting on Timothy ._ 27 

Redtop (Agrostis vulgaris) 43 

Orchard Grass (Dactylis glomerata) 47 

Growth Made by Orchard Grass 49 

Brome Grass (Bromus inermis) 51 

Meadow Fescue (Festuca elatior) 54 

Sheep Fescue (Festuca ovina) , ..,„... . , 57 

Italian Ryegrass (Lolium perenne) 59 

Tall Oatgrass (Arrhenatherum avenaceum) 61 

Johnson Grass (Sorghum halapense) 63 

Kentucky Bluegrass (Poa pratensis) 77 

A Virginia Mountain Pasture , . . 81 

Grazing in the Virginia Mountains 83 

Export Steers on Virginia Bluegrass 93 

Tethering Cattle on Grass in France 95 

Canada Bluegrass (Poa compressa) lOi 

Bermuda Grass (Cynadon dactylon) II3 

Typical Bermuda Grass Plant 119 

Carpet Grass (Paspalum compressum) I23 

Texas Blukigrass (Poa arachnifera) 125 

Quack Grass (Agropyrum repens) I27 

Nimble WILL (Muhlenbergia diffusa) 131 

Soybean Roots with Nodules 136 

White Clover in Tennessee 151 

Common Red Clover (Trifolium pratense) I53 

Dodder on Red Clover 163 

Sweet Clover (Melilotus alba) I79 

Red Clover Roots with Tubercles 179 

Hairy Vetch (Vicia villosa) 184 

Typical Hairy Vetch Plant 186 

CowPEA Plant 186 

Canada Field Pea Plant I93 

CowPEA Plant with Long Roots I95 

Rack for Curing Cowpea Hay 197 

CowPEA Hay Cocked Over Rack 198 

Cowpea Hay Rack Ready to Move 199 

CowPEAs in a Southern Field 201 

Velvet Bean Plant and Parts 203 

Soybean Plant 205 

Typical Soybean Plant 2 07 

Soybeans in a Tennessee Field 209 

Dodder on an Alfalfa Plant 213 

Mature Dodder on Alfalfa 213 

Bluejoint Grass (Deyenxia Canadensis) 249 

Fowl Meadow Grass (Poa serotina) 251 

Border Leicester Sheep on Scotch Pasture 255 

Grass and Sheep in England 259 

Horses in a French Pasture 269 

Bluegrass Cut from Unmanured Land 276 

Bluegrass from Manured Land 277 

Lambs in English Hurdles ! ! ! 295 

Map of English Pasture Work 312 

Sketch Showing Gains on Grass 319 

Crimson Clover in Guernsey 337 

Para Grass in Florida 361 

Japanese Cane in Florida 362 

Velvet Beans in Southern Field , ... 363 

Natal Grass Field 365 



Next in importance to the divine profusion of water, light and 
air, those three physical facts which render existence possible, may 
be reckoned the universal beneficence of grass. Lying in the sun- 
shine among the buttercups and dandelions of May, scarcely higher 
in intelligence than those minute tenants of that mimic wilder- 
ness, our earliest recollections are of grass; and when the fitful 
fever is ended, and the foolish wrangle of the market and the 
forum is closed, grass heals over the scar which our descent into 
the bosom of the earth has made, and the carpet of the infant be- 
comes the blanket of the dead. 

Grass is the forgiveness of Nature — her constant benediction. 
Fields trampled with battle, saturated with blood, torn with the 
ruts of cannon, grow green again with grass, and carnage is for- 
gotten. Streets abandoned by traffic become grass-grown, like 
rural lanes, and are obliterated. Forests decay, harvests perish, 
flowers vanish, but grass is immortal. Beleaguered by the sullen 
hosts of winter it withdraws into the impregnable fortress of its 
subterranean vitality and emerges upon the solicitation of spring. 
Sown by the winds, by wandering birds, propagated by the subtle 
horticulture of the elements which are its ministers and servants, 
it softens the rude outlines of the world. It invades the solitude 
of deserts, climbs the inaccessible slopes and pinnacles of moun- 
tains, and modifies the history, character and destiny of nations. 
Unobtrusive and patient, it has immortal vigor and aggression. 
Banished from the thoroughfares and fields, it bides its time to 
return, and when vigilance is relaxed or the dynasty has perished 
it silently resumes the throne from which it has been expelled 
but which it never abdicates. It bears no blazonry of bloom to 
charm the senses with fragrance or splendor, but its homely hue 
is more enchanting than the lily or the rose. It yields no fruit 
in earth or air, yet should its harvest fail for a single year famine 
would depopulate the world. — John James Ingalls. 



Consider what we owe to the meadow grass, to the covering of 
the dark ground by that glorious enamel, by the companies of 
those soft, countless, and peaceful spears of the field. Follow but 
a little time the thought of all that we ought to recognize in those 
words. All spring and summer is in them — the walks by silent 
scented paths, the rest in noonday heat, the joy of the herds and 
flocks, the power of all shepherd life and meditation; the life of 
the sunlight upon the world, falling in emerald streaks and soft 
blue shadows, when else it would have struck on the dark mould 
or scorching dust; pastures beside the pacing brooks, soft banks 
and knolls of lowly hills, thymy slopes of dawn overlooked by the 
blue line of lifted sea; crisp lawns all dim with early dew, or 
smooth in evening warmth of barred sunshine, dented by happy feet, 
softening in their fall the sound of loving voices. — John Ruskin, 



PREFACE. 

The genesis of this book was a ride across England 
one day in May, 1907. The earth was green and beauti- 
ful, the pastures lush, the meadows giving brave promise. 
Many cows grazed the pastures, fleecy sheep climbed the 
hills of Derbyshire, great mares watched their lubberly 
colts race across the sward and all was one harmonious 
scene of peace, restfulness and security. There was some- 
thing especially alluring in an agriculture based essentially 
on permanent things like meadows and pastures that do 
not let fields erode, that maintain and build fertility, that 
make possible the higher types of agriculture based on 
keeping good animals, on making milk for babes, wool for 
soft garments or fine young horses for the use of man. 

All along the way I observed there was much doing 
in the meadows. Great hopper-shaped machines on two 
wheels were going to and fro over the grass distributing 
something, I knew not what. Evidently the grasses were 
being fed; evidently the wonderful carpet of green did 
not "just happen" — it was part of a definite plan. It was 
fed, with what? 

I learned a great deal during that summer in Europe 
of the habits of men in* feeding grasses in that land, in 
making and maintaining meadows and pastures. All my 
life I had loved grasses, and clovers, the meadowland and 
the pasture, as had my fathers and grandfathers before 
me, and this work appealed to me. I resolved to help on 
the same sort of work in America. My book "Alfalfa in 

(7) 



8 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

America" was the first step, and was a labor of love. 
With that book out of the way, I took up this one and 
have labored on it intermittently ever since. I am con- 
scious of its imperfections and limitations, and can only 
plead that in America the work of learning what can be 
done with meadows and pastures is so new that I can not 
find data. 

Let me here give thanks to the men who have helped 
me. On my table has lain constantly Seal's "Grasses of 
North America." ''Spillman's Farm Grasses of the United 
States," Thos. F. Hunt's 'The Forage and Fiber Crops 
of America," and every known bulletin of the various 
states of America and the Department of Agriculture. I 
have also draw^n considerably from E. B. Voorhees' 
"Forage Crops." In truth, it has not infrequently come 
over me with wonder, "Why, here is better material than 
you can present ; Why not tell your readers to go directly 
to Beal, Hunt, Spillman or Voorhees rather than to read 
a book of your own?" 

I do, indeed, earnestly advise each reader to buy all of 
these books. They are all valuable, each one in its own 
way. Nevertheless, I have been able here to add, I hope, 
a little to the sum of knowledge of grasses and clovers, 
their care and the feeding of meadow and pasture land, 
so that maybe this book will find use on American farms. 



INTRODUCTION. 

I sit to write this book just as spring comes timidly 
sweeping over the land. Winter has been long and cold, 
the naked cornfields are sodden, gullied with winter rains ; 
there is no hint of life thereon. Wherever the plow held 
sway last summer there is rueful countenance today. I 
look out across wide stretches of meadow and pasture 
land. There already the ground is covered with green- 
ness, the tiny grass blades are pushing up, the clovers are 
coming, too, the soil is alive^ the field is a living thing, 
robing itself with green. On the cornlands there has been 
waste during winter. The rains have washed; the fer- 
tility has leached away. Not so with the fields of grass 
and clover ; they have more than held their own ; they are 
richer, not poorer, for the lapse of time. 

Pastures feed mankind; they are the bedrock of civ- 
ilization. From my window I see cows tranquilly graz- 
ing the short, tender grass under the lee of the hill — the 
grass that the first sun has warmed and made sweet. 
Those cows are the foster-mothers of the human race. 
They are alchemists, transforming the green carpet of na- 
ture into milk yellow with cream, food for mankind, 
making sturdy limbs of childhood and brain, muscle and 
endurance in man. Children love the wide pastures, the 
sunny, grassy slopes. The largeness, freedom and sweet- 
ness of the grassy outdoors build the child. The cow 
comes homeward with swinging udder filled to nourish, 

(9) 



10 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

to build, to replenish the mother, the strong sons, the little 
toddling children. Truly their flesh is grass. 

In another pasture I see white-fleeced sheep; I hear 
the tinkle of their bells. Eagerly they nip the tender 
grass and the budding clovers. Their lambs race on the 
hill-slopes; a grave-faced man with stooping shoulders 
walks among them, giving each ewe and each lamb a 
searching glance. Under one arm he carries a dangling 
lamb, one of new-born twnns, wandered from their 
mother. Presently he unites the little family and with 
satisfaction sees the mother ewe own her lamb, and with 
true maternal instinct proceed to fill it with milk. Its little 
tail wags a joyous story; the shepherd smiles and goes on 
his way. The pastures clothe mankind. 

The races of men who wear wool dominate the world. 
The keeping of sheep has made characters so strong, so 
brave, manly and true that they have changed the history 
of the world. Moses keeping his father-in-law's flock on 
the desert ranges of Midian dreamed there dreams, 
gained strength, faith and persistent courage that enabled 
him to lead the children of Israel from bondage to the 
Promised Land. Young David, watching sheep on the hills 
of Judea, gained strength, courage and farsighted w^isdom 
that led him to be the deliverer of his people, their great- 
est king and singer. There is something that comes from 
living amid pastures that makes men sane, patient, endur- 
ing, imbued with deep love for their land and their 
country. 

Carrying farther the thought of the influence of pas- 
tures on civilization, I see grazing on the hillside a mare 
and a foal. While the sheep clothes and helps feed man- 



INTRODUCTION H 

kind the horse g-ives him his strength. By means of the 
horse he subdues forests, emerges into new lands which 
he makes into states, plows, plants and reaps fields of 
maize or of Avheat, drag harvests to the railways that 
carry them, to the hungry peoples of the world. The 
horse creates highways and maintains them, creates com- 
merce, creates and carries food, fuel, clothing — all the 
things that go to make up the needs of man. While the 
sheep comforts mankind and the cow nourishes, the horse 
makes man what he is — strong, swift, bold, daring. And 
all this comes from the pasture. 

In the past we have not esteemed pastures as we should. 
We have with our pastures an inheritance of neglect. In 
the beginning when fields were carved with infinite toil 
from forests, the maize was fenced, the wheat enclosed, 
the animals were turned outside. That land which had 
received no labor was made pasture. Since then we have 
followed a like practice ; all our labor, all the manure, all 
the lime and drainage, go to the plow land, the pasture 
receiving nothing. The richest, most level and best- 
drained lands are plowed ; what is too rough or too poor 
or too wet is made into pasture. In the northern and 
middle states grasses come of their own accord, so on 
pastures none are sown. The owner knows little or noth- 
ing as to the profit derived from this pasture. Very likely 
he will tell you that it has no profit at all, only conven- 
ience. Year by year the grasses grow of their own ac- 
cord; they require no sowing, no expense save fencing. 
No credit is given for gallons of milk produced from 
this grass, for pounds of butter, for growth of young pigs, 
colts, lambs and calves. The work horses run on the 



12 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

pasture at night, but rhe owner forgets to credit the pas- 
ture for helping in their upkeep and conducing greatly to 
their health. When he has his plow lands well under hand, 
he turns longing eyes toward his pasture, and probably 
sets the fence in so that he can plow a slice of it and add 
it to the field. It is doubtful whether he has any acre of 
plow land that is making him more clear profit than the 
same width of pasture land, yet he knows it not. It has 
never occurred to him to drain his pasture land, to feed 
't, to lime it perhaps, and make it more profitable. 

The purpose of this book is to bring this matter of 
permanent grass and clovers, the meadows and pastures, 
before farmers, helping them to see the profit that may 
be had from them, helping them make two blades of 
grass grow where only one grows now. It is high time. 
The year of 1910 witnessed almost a famine in many 
cities, with foods so high in price that men, women and 
children have made great outcry, and with good reason. 
The way to feed the people is not to plow more land, 
but better to till what land is plowed. To feed the 
people we must first broaden our permanent pastures, and 
make them more productive. An acre of bluegrass has 
produced 500 pounds of beef in Virginia. xA.n Illinois 
cornfield with a 40-bushel crop (above the average for 
that state) would make fewer pounds of beef or pork. 
The Virginia pasture is not eroding and is losing its 
fertility at least much more slowly than the land planted 
to corn, given cultivation and exposed for seven months 
to leaching and washing of rains. I know grazing farms 
in Virginia that have yielded $15 per acre in beef and 
lambs and colt flesh. Laying down lands to pasture or 



INTRODUCTION 13 

meadow is not going backward in civilization or develop- 
ment. The growth of our cities makes call for more 
milk, cream, lambs, pigs, calves and colts. We can lay 
down a fourth of our corn acres and with feeding and 
good culture grow more on the remaining three acres 
than we have been accustomed to grow on the four. By 
the aid of the land laid down to pasture we can become 
in a measure independent of distant sources of supply 
for animals to feed. The pasture land will make our 
lads better linked to the soil. A boy is not easily 
fastened to a plowed field ; his affections are not deeply 
set on a corncrib or a grain bin. The pasture, with its 
inhabitants, the frolicking lambs, the bright-eyed calves, 
the sturdy colts and great, gentle mares — these touch 
his heart and make him glad to succeed his father on 
the old home farm. 

Withal there is such deep ignorance of the art of 
making, holding and feeding meadows and pastures in 
America that I have thought it well worth while under- 
taking these investigations and seeking to help what I 
could. Before I began this task I addressed a letter 
to each experiment station director in the United States 
asking for help. It was amazing to see how many re- 
plied in effect, ''We regret that we have made no in- 
vestigations along the line of work about which you in- 
quire, and have no record of ever having fertilized any 
pasture or permanent grassland." Beside these letters, 
I did receive many most helpful ones not only from 
home, but some even more inspiring from abroad. In 
the Old World one finds pastures most prized, best fed, 
best cared for; there already men have begun to learn 



14 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

the art and science of making two blades of grass grow 
where but one grew before. I wish this book to be as 
short, simple and concise as w;ill go with accuracy. I 
promise to leave out of it everything that my conscience 
will permit me to leave out. 

There are 3,500 species of grasses in the world and 
6,500 species of legumes. All of these are interesting. 
Life is so short that we shall here consider only those 
that have proved their merit. The list is a surprisingly 
short one both of clovers and grasses. 



THE GRASSES (GRAMINEOE). 

Probably the grasses are the most useful plants in the 
world. It may be that more than half the individual plants 
in the world are grasses. It is a great family of more 
than 3,500 species, embracing species that are so tiny 
that they hardly reach an inch in height, and the giant 
bamboos of the tropics that sometimes grow to be 100' 
or more. Corn is a giant grass ; and wheat, rye, oats, 
barley, rice and sugar cane, all are grasses. Then there 
are millets, sorghum, Kafifir-corn, broom corn — all 
grasses. Some few plants we call grasses are not true 
grasses ; the sedges are of a lower order of plants. Broom 
sedge is not a grass. 

One can know a grass usually by its round often hol- 
low stem, its long, narrow leaf with usually parallel 
veins and its manner of growth, not from buds at 
the terminus of the part, but by leaf and stem being 
pushed up from beneath. All grass stems are jointed; 
the nodes are bulging and usually solid. The leaves clasp 
the stems in enveloping sheaths. 

Most grasses, especially the perennials, have creeping 
underground stems or root-stocks. These make new stems 
to spring up around the parent stem and thus perennial 
grasses usually thicken themselves rapidly. Some an- 
nual grasses do this and some do not ; nearly all grasses 
"stool" or increase by sending up many stems from one 
root. Wheat may send up 40 or more stems from one 
seed if the soil is rich; corn will sucker, sending up sev- 

(15) 



16 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

eral stalks, as will the sorghums, millets and all those 
classes of large grasses. Some species send out long 
trailing stems or runners lying flat on the earth and tak- 
ing root at each joint. Some, like the quack grass (Agro- 
pyrum repens), fill the soil with a mass of roots that will 
each send up new stems and if dragged to a fresh spot 
will there make a new center of growth. 

The number of species of grasses is enormous, yet we 
have adopted into our system of agriculture but a few 
sorts. In part that is due to the ease or difficulty of 
seeding grasses. Timothy grass, for example, is so easily 
sown and the seed so easily gathered, that it is soonest 
set of any, and has become the standard hay grass of 
northern climes. In some regions Kentucky bluegrass is 
the almost universal pasture grass because it comes in of 
itself; in other regions with different soil (poor and 
lacking in lime) redtop has possession. Naturally the 
farmer follows the line of least resistance, yet it is by no 
means certain that he has adopted into his agriculture all 
the best grasses that nature has provided. 

On the mountains and hills of Utah, for instance, once 
grew wild bunch grasses that would keep cattle fat all 
winter, standing dry, yellow and cured on their stems. 
We have not yet learned to use that bunch grass in cul- 
tivation; maybe we shall never learn it. In Ohio the 
wild grass of the open plain, blue joint (Calamagrostis 
Canadensis), made far more hay to the acre than tim- 
othy does, and I think the hay was fully as good. Some 
day we shall do more towards using now neglected spe- 
cies ; their seeding habit is what is now in the way. 

On the other hand, many grasses listed as useful are 



HOW GRASSES FEED 17 

not in use, and there must be good reason for this. Some 
of the Httle used but recommended grasses are not easily 
estabHshed. Sheep fescue, for example, I have always 
found most difficult to establish in Ohio, though the few 
plants that I have succeeded in getting have grown well. 
So of a number of the other fescues ; while they may be 
useful grasses in their place, yet the part they play in 
American agriculture is negligible, with the exception of 
Meadow fescue (Festuca pratensis). While one may 
doubt the wisdom of the individual farmer, here and there, 
yet there is no denying that collectively, as a mass, they 
have followed the lines of least resistance and, as a rule, 
found the plants that will give them best results. There 
are exceptions to this rule. For example, in most of the 
states north of the Ohio River brome grass (Bromus 
inermis) seems to me to be the best of all pasture grass- 
es, yet because it does not come of itself it is as yet al- 
most never seen. So, too, the reed canary grass seems 
unusually prolific and productive, but because of difficulty 
in seeding it is seldom used. 

HOW GRASSES FEED. 

Grasses have wonderful root development. Their fine, 
fibrous roots penetrate deeply into the soil and occupy 
each tiny crevice. I have seen barley roots penetrate 8' 
into loose loamy soil in California before the tops had 
reached 12" in height. These tiny rootlets have great 
power to absorb ; some of them have power even to dis- 
solve. Grasses use a good deal of silica to stiffen their 
stems. This silica is sometimes dissolved from grains of 
quartz sand. Some silica-loving plants will even etch 



18 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

glass that comes in contact with their roots, dissolving it 
to obtain their building material. Grasses have great 
power of absorbing whatever fertilizing materials there 
may be in the soil. Their roots cluster thick wherever 
there is food, finding any decaying material in the soil 
and nesting there in multitudes. There seems indeed a 
subtle intelligence in nature; it is almost as though the 
grass roots were alive, for they seem to seek out and find 
the desirable feeding places in the soil. The fact prob- 
ably is that they penetrate nearly every crevice in the 
soil, but unless they find nourishment they do not thicken 
and increase. The way grass roots find their way through 
the soil is interesting. The tip of a growing root has 
a constant motion to each side, so that as it pushes for- 
ward it feels its way, entering every open channel. 

This explanation explains only in part, for the fact is 
that the roots of a plant persist in keeping a more or 
less direct course away from the stem, spreading in 
every direction much as the branches do above ground. 
Were there not some subtle intelligence in nature the 
roots would double back on themselves and tangle inex- 
tricably. They very fully occupy the soil and to far 
greater depth than is often supposed, especially if the 
subsoil happens to be permeable and fertile. This ex- 
plains why underdrainage helps grasslands and why 
grasses so thoroughly use up soil moisture during periods 
of drouth. 

Plants absorb the moisture and available plant food of 
the soil, having also the power to dissolve locked-up, min- 
eral plant food. There are four elements that the plants 
mainly need in soils, (the others usually being in plenti- 



GRASSES AND CLOVERS TOGETHER 19 

ful supply and so of lesser importance in considering the 
fertility of a soil). These elements are phosphorus, po- 
tassium, nitrogen and calcium. It is notable that soils 
seem to select their plants, or vice versa. One finds in a 
certain soil one type of grasses, in another soil a very dif- 
ferent type. Where lime abounds, with phosphorus, po- 
tassium and nitrogen, one sees the Kentucky bluegrass 
occupying all the land, no other species being able to main- 
tain a foothold. In a soil poorer in lime and phosphorus 
Canada bluegrass will be found, and where lime is mark- 
edly deficient with also a scarcity of other mineral ele- 
ments (they usually go together) redtop predominates. 

Clovers gather nitrogen from the air through the ac- 
tion of bacteria that inhabit their roots. Grasses have 
no such affinity for bacteria, and no means of gathering 
nitrogen. Grasses feed largely on nitrogen and soon take 
it out of the soil when kept closely cropped or mown off 
for hay. 

GRASSES AND CLOVERS SHOULD BE GROWN TOGETHER. 

Because clovers have power to provide nitrogen they 
and the grasses should always be grown together. In- 
deed, this is nature's way. There is commonly seen in 
nature an intermixture of plants and none more perfect 
or adapted to good ends than the mixture of grasses with 
clovers. One often sees an old pasture become thin and 
the grasses somewhat feeble, then white clover appears 
and overruns it. The clover finds mineral elements suffi- 
cient and the grasses weak and off their guard. After the 
clover has grown well there for a time the soil is filled 
with nitrogen once more and then the grasses spring up 
with renewed vigor and the clover is subdued and nearly 



20 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

suppressed. When the grasses have again exhausted part 
of the available nitrogen and become less vigorous the 
clover reappears, and so the endless round of nature goes 
on. Timothy yields much more hay when red clover is 
sown with it than when sown alone; Bermuda grass 
thrives best when white or bur clover is grown with it, 
for any clover will secure nitrogen from the air. 

AN OLD SOD IS RICH. 

"To break a pasture will make a man, to make a pas- 
ture will break a man," is an old English saying. It is 
well known that sod ground is rich, especially rich in 
nitrogen. Grasses will not yield their maximum till they 
have accumulated a "sod." What is a sod? It is a tough 
fibrous mass of roots, stems and decaying leaves; half is 
alive and half is dead. It is made up of all the plants 
that grow^ on the pasture — grasses, clovers and \veeds. 
It may be as tough almost as a carpet, and can be cut and 
rolled like a green rug. Sods contain much nitrogen. 
How do they get it ? It was not till 1901 that we knew of 
a group of beneficent bacteria that live on decaying veg- 
etable matter in the soil, the "azotobacter." This group 
of bacteria revels in old pasture sods ; the bacteria like a 
soil rich in decaying vegetation, with enough lime, with 
air in plenty and moisture enough. It is through these 
azotobacter that old sods, even when clovers have been 
absent, are yet rich in nitrogen. 

PRODUCTIVITY OF PASTURES. 

Old sods often have double the carrying power of new- 
ly-seeded grass land. The reasons for this may be va- 
rious, yet one chief reason is in the presence in the old 



sod-bound; how grasses grow 21 

pasture of a sod, a dense mass of decaying stems, leaves 
and rootlets, with their accompanying bacterial flora add- 
ing nitrogen to the soil to promote life in the living stems. 
The lesson is plain; do not overstock young grassland; 
let it grow rank enough so that part of the grass may 
fall to the ground and decay to start the development of 
these life-giving bacteria. The work may also be greatly 
expedited by scattering manure over the newly-made pas- 
ture land. 

DO PASTURES BECOME "sOD-BOUND" ? 

A common belief among farmers is that pastures fail 
to produce as well as they should sometimes after stand- 
ing for a term of years because they have become ''sod- 
bound;" that is, too many plants are established to a 
square foot. Probably this is seldom, if ever, true. The 
pasture declines not because of over population but be- 
cause of the using up of its available plant food. To test 
the matter, take the worst bit of dense pasture sod you 
can find and feed it, either with manure or with nitrate 
of soda (at the rate of about ^ pound to the square rod) 
and see if it does not at once immensely improve and 
grow perhaps four times as much forage as will grow on 
the adjoining land unfertilized. To plow that sod, kill- 
ing the grasses and letting their stems and roots decay in 
the soil, would also fill the land with nitrogen, but it 
would take years to restore as good a set of grass as was 
already there, needing only to be fed. 

HOW GRASSES GROW. 

A curious and distinguishing trait of grasses is their 
manner of growth. Most plants grow from the unfolding 



22 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

of terminal buds, and the continual formation of new- 
buds at the tips or sides of branches. Grasses grow from 
the lower ends of their leaves or blades; thus, you may 
cut off the grass blades as often as you like and they will 
again be pushed up from below. This curious fact is of 
the greatest value, as it makes possible the pasturing of 
grasses with no injury to them. Clovers fed down close 
yield only a fraction of their normal growth, since they 
can not after being bitten off grow again till new buds 
are formed, while grasses bitten off will, if there is mois- 
ture and warmth and fertility under them, at once push 
up the bitten blades high enough to afford a second bite, 
and this they will do indefinitely. 

HOW GRASSES THICKEN. 

Grasses tend to increase by means of their spreading 
underground rootstocks. These rootstocks are not true 
roots, but are in reality underground stems. Some grass- 
es are very wonderful in their development of under- 
ground stems, providing very stout, stiff, powerful root- 
stocks armed with hard, sharp points able to penetrate 
almost anything. It is not unusual to see a root of quack 
grass penetrate entirely through a potato. A large num- 
ber of grasses have these creeping underground stems, 
Kentucky bluegrass, brome grass, redtop, and Bermuda 
grass being good examples. There are other grasses that 
tend always to remain in clumps, as the fescue grasses, 
timothy, orchard grass, and western bunch grass. Even 
these stooling grasses increase, but the new offshoots are 
always sent up close to the parent stem. 

This tendency of grasses to thicken themselves makes 



GRASSES FOR MEADOWS 23 

it easy to get a good thick sod. One need not sow more 
seed after one gets a sprinkling of grass ; one needs only 
in some way to increase the fertility of the soil either by 
manuring or fertilizing or by sowing legumes, and in a 
short time nature will plant the grass plot so thickly that 
no room will be found for more plants. 

SOME GOOD GRASSES FOR MEADOW. 

Timothy. — More has been said for and against timothy 
grass than almost any other grass or forage crop. It has 
been lauded as the best feed for horses. It has been de- 
nounced as the poorest forage coming from the meadow. 
•It has been declared unfit for sheep or cows because of 
its deficiency in protein. It has been declared to be no 
better than straw in a ration for cattle or horses. Livery 
stable keepers refuse to buy any other hay for their hard- 
driven horses. Many men declare that horses will work 
better on timothy hay than on alfalfa or almost any other 
hay. The fact remains, after all has been said, that tim- 
othy is, and will long remain, the standard hay crop of 
America. There are several very good reasons for this 
fact. It is very easily established ; the seed is cheap and 
easily sown. It comes soon and yields its best crop, very 
likely, the year after it is established. It is an easy grass 
to make into hay. It has fair palatability and horses once 
accustomed to it relish it. It is not very nourishing when 
cut as ripe as is common practice, and thus there is no bad 
result from feeding horses plenty of it; in truth, they 
will not ordinarily eat too much of it, as it is not suffi- 
ciently palatable to tempt them. Contrasted with alfalfa, 
it has far less of nourishment in it, but alfalfa is often 



24 



MEADOWS AND PASTURES 




Timothy (Phleum pratense). 



WHEN TO CUT TIMOTHY 25 

fed in too large amounts to horses and the excess of nu- 
triment fed them must be eHminated and that fact makes 
them sweat more and tire sooner than had they not been 
overfed. The plain truth is that timothy hay is safest 
for horses ordinarily because it is not much more than a 
filler, the animals getting nourishment from grain. 

When to Cut Timothy Hay. — Timothy hay is not a 
suitable forage for dairy cows, fattening animals, or 
sheep ; it is too woody and unnutritious for that unless it 
is cut early. Early-cut timothy hay is tender and digest- 
ible. As it ripens it becomes more and more woody. Prof. 
H. J. Waters, when Director of the Missouri Experiment 
Station, made some very valuable investigations as to the 
effect of harvesting timothy hay at various stages of de- 
velopment. Briefly, it was mown when in full head but 
not in bloom, when in full bloom, when the seeds were 
formed, when the seeds were in the dough and when the 
seeds were fully ripe and some of them shed. It was ex- 
pected that a large increase in yield of weight of hay 
would be found as ripening progressed. This did not 
prove to be true. The tests were carried through several 
years and varied in results considerably, yet usually nei- 
ther the first nor last cutting made the greatest weight 
of hay; sometimes it fell to that cut when in full bloom, 
sometimes to that with seed just formed and in one in- 
stance to the cutting made before bloom. Usually there 
was considerable shrinkage in the hay cut before bloom. 
The evidence, judged by weight alone, seems to point 
conclusively to cutting just when the seeds are formed. 
Cutting at that time also produces hay of the highest 
market quality. 



26 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

Digestibility and Time of Cutting. — There is another 
factor than yield to consider, especially if one is to feed 
the hay to one's own animals ; that is, palatability and di- 
gestibility. Early-cut timothy is tender, well-flavored, 
easily masticated and digested. Animals like early-cut 
hay and eat it readily. Late-cut hay is tough, woody, 
hard to chew and hard to digest. If one succeeds in get- 
ting a great weight of hay cut with seed fully ripe one 
has little if any more than so much straw. A great deal 
of the protein that should be in the hay has gone into the 
seed, and animals can not digest timothy seed. The 
plants have developed a great deal of woody fiber and that 
has locked up much nourishment that otherwise would 
have been available. 

Green grasses are full of sap ; that sap is the best part 
of the grass. Everyone knows the good that foUow^s put- 
ting animals out to graze tender, juicy grass. Grasses 
cut with the sap in them, dried and made iiito hay, will 
maintain animals nearly or quite as well as though they 
were grazing it green. My father knew that well, and 
by cutting his meadows early, he would usually be 
through haying by the time his neighbors had begun. He 
often told me that early-cut grass would feed young cat- 
tle as well as ripe grass and grain. His practice proved 
his theory. He always wintered young steers on hay 
alone and they grew well and came through in good or- 
der, afterward grazing exceedingly well. It was not un- 
usual for him to cut timothy before it flowered ; oftener 
he would cut it when in full bloom. He would always 
have red clover mixed through his timothy meadows so 
long as it would endure. 



WHEN TO CUT TIMOTHY 



27 










28 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

The Missouri Experiments. — To test this thing, Prof. 
Waters at Columbia fed steers on timothy hay alone and 
gave them their choice of the several cuttings. These 
were put in the rack so that the steers, would eat as they 
liked. In every instance, they began to eat the first-cut 
grass, taking next that cut second and refusing to eat any 
of the ripe cut hay till the earlier-cut was all consumed. 
The instincts of animals are very safe guides when mat- 
ters of nutrition are concerned. The investigations of 
Prof. Waters are so interesting and the results secured 
so valuable that I advise the reader to see The Breeder's 
Gazette of June g, 1909 and June 16, 1909. I quote 
his conclusions : *'So far all the results have been in fa- 
vor of the earlier cuttings. The yields were larger, the 
hay was more completely digested, and was more pala- 
table to the stock. In the matter of convenience of har- 
vesting the balance tips heavily the other way. The 
greener the grain is cut the longer time it takes to cure, 
the more easily it is damaged by showers and heavy dews, 
and the more readily it will sunburn." The fact is, how- 
ever, if one is farming to feed one's animals one can well 
afford to face those obstacles in the hope of getting the 
larger nutrition from the land and of having the animals 
in better thrift and flesh. 

Time of Cutting and the Health of the Plants. — There 
is another side to this question — that of early or late har- 
vesting. Fortunately, Waters has also made this clear. 
It is the effect of the cutting at different times on the fu- 
ture yield. It has long been noted that in the drier parts 
of the timothy belt, the yield of subsequent crops was 
injured by early cutting. This is not usually true in the 



WHERE TIMOTHY PAYS 29 

eastern and moister parts of the country. Prof. Waters 
points out that* timothy increases by muUiphcation of 
bulbs, somewhat as some sorts of onions increase. These 
bulbs store food for the future growth of the plants. As 
the timothy ripens nutriment is being stored in the new 
bulbs as well as in the seeds. If it is then cut too early the 
bulbs are weakened and the stand lessened. These 
bulbs also increase and store nourishment in the fall while 
the aftermath is growing; therefore it is a serious injury 
to a timothy meadow to pasture it in the fall. Timothy 
meadows should never be pastured unless the aftermath 
is unusually heavy due to a moist fall. It is not easy to 
thicken a timothy stand by sowing fresh seed. Nature's 
way is to thicken by increase of bulbs. Good feeding 
will do much to keep the stand dense. Except in the 
moister and cooler parts of the United States, one can 
not expect to make a permanency of a timothy meadow ; 
it must occasionally be plowed and cultivated for a year 
or more and resown. Other grasses creep in to oust the 
timothy, the chief offenders being Kentucky and Canada 
bluegrasses and redtop. These grasses being much more 
firmly rooted than timothy, can not be got out without 
plowing the meadow. 

Where Timothy is Profitable. — Timothy may be grown 
as far south as central Mississippi if sown on rich alluvial 
soil ; it does not endure for a long time except in cooler, 
moister regions. Its natural home is along the northern 
edge of the cornbelt, northward far into Canada through- 
out New England, the high parks of the Rocky Moun- 
tains with irrigation, and the rainy side of the Pacific 



* The Breeder's Gazette. June 30. 1909. 



30 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

Coast States. In the central states timothy thrives for a 
few years, but tends steadily towards replacement with 
other grasses. Timothy responds to rich, moist soil, well 
filled with decaying vegetable matter. 

What to Sozv. — Perhaps no other grass has been found 
that affiliates well with timothy, and any admixture will 
lower its grade in the market. On poor soils deficient in 
carbonate of lime, redtop thrives better than timothy and 
is sometimes sown with it, though redtop is an inferior 
grass. Clovers grow well with timothy and are an aid 
to it. Common red clover suits it best under ordinary 
conditions, though on moist land inclined to need lime 
alsike clover is more vigorous, and on dry, rich soils al- 
falfa and timothy thrive well together. Unfortunately 
the market objects to a large proportion of clover in tim- 
othy hay, though if it is nicely cured the hay is really 
very much enriched by the mixture. Red clover disap- 
pears after the second year quite completely and there is 
no doubt that the yield of timothy is materially increased 
by having had the clover as an associate. Timothy rap- 
idly uses up the nitrogen of the soil, and this the red 
clover accumulates. 

Alfalfa zvith Timothy. — Where one grows timothy for 
one's own use one can well afford to sow with it alfalfa, 
since the alfalfa will greatly enrich the timothy as hay 
and will also make it grow the more vigorously. To ac- 
complish the mixture, however, one must sow the two 
seeds together, either in August or in spring, or else es- 
tablish the alfalfa first and later sow the timothy. We 
may sow alfalfa alone in April or May or June, depend- 
ing on situation and the season best adapted to alfalfa 



SOWING TIMOTHY AND CLOVER 31 

sowing-; then in the fall, after the alfalfa has been har- 
vested, one can harrow in timothy seed with every hope 
of a stand. In the course of three years the timothy will 
rather get the upper hand of the alfalfa, unless the land 
is especially well adapted to alfalfa, yet that fact need 
not deter one from sowing them together, as when the 
alfalfa is gone the timothy will be more vigorous than if 
it had not been sown with it. Another method of sowing 
timothy and alfalfa together is to sow them very early in 
April on well-prepared land. In this case a seeding- of a 
bushel to the acre of spring barley may be used, which 
will be cut for hay when in bloom or soon afterward. If 
the timothy should seem a little thin in the fall a bit more 
seed may be sown then. It is useless to sow alfalfa ex- 
cept on well-drained land that has in it plenty of carbon- 
ate of lime. It is true, however, that any land that is 
just right for alfalfa is right to make a maximum crop 
of timothy as well. The mixture of alfalfa and timothy 
comes far nearer being a balanced ration than either of 
the plants used alone. 

Method of Sozving Timothy and Clover. — Timothy is 
usually sown in the fall with wheat or other fall sown 
grain. Hardly any crop is easier established. Given a 
good seedbed and a fair degree of fertility and the tim- 
othy seed sown with wheat in September or October, one 
will secure a stand in nearly every instance. It is usual 
to sow with a grain drill having a separate grass-seeding 
compartment which scatters the seed in front of the drill, 
though some prefer to have it fall behind. It is largely 
a matter of how the weather behaves that determines 
which practice is best. 



32 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

Quantity of Seed. — The amount of seed used is from 
4 to 20 pounds per acre. Very thick stands are less pro- 
ductive than normal stands. Probably a rational seeding 
for ordinary soils and seasons would be one peck or ii 
pounds to the acre. The clover is added in the spring. 
There are several methods in vogue to get a catch of 
clover in wheat that has been sown to timothy. The usual 
method is to sow about lo pounds to the acre of clover in 
March when the land has been honeycombed by frost, de- 
pending on the frost to cover the seed. Another and bet- 
ter plan, so far as the clover is concerned, is to wait till 
the land can be harrowed, say in April, and then to sow 
the seed and harrow sufficiently to cover it slightly. With 
care this can be done with no marked injury to the tim- 
othy and with marked benefit to the wheat. 

Mixtures Produce the Most Hoy, — Very much more 
forage can be taken from land seeded to mixtures of 
grasses and clovers than when any one plant has exclusive 
possession of the soil. Thus timothy and clover produce 
more than would timothy alone, and if more than one 
species of clover is put in it will yield more than if red 
clover alone is the consort. Alsike clover may be added, 
a sprinkle of alfalfa, some mammoth red clover and some 
redtop. Orchard grass and brome grass ripen too early 
to be sown with timothy. Meadow fescue added in the 
spring will help somewhat. It is really astonishing the 
amount of herbage a mixed planting will yield, especially 
if the land is well enriched and has been deeply-plowed 
and well-prepared. The different species of plants have 
somewhat different food requirements and habits of feed- 
ing. The legumes can utilize the free nitrogen of the 



SOWING AND MANURING TIMOTHY 33 

air; some root deeper than others and thus by growing 
them together the whole soil and space are best occupied. 

Sowing Timothy Alone. — It is not necessary nor al- 
ways desirable to sow timothy with a nurse-crop. In any 
region not subject to very dry falls it is good practice to 
sow timothy and clover together in late summer, say in 
late July or during August. Sown thus early the grass 
will make a full crop of hay the next year. This it will 
not do sown in the fall, as there will not be time for the 
fall seeding to grow a crop of the bulbs on which the 
rapid spring growth depends. Getting a stand in late 
summer is dependent on good treatment of the soil. It 
should be plowed some time before seeding, and carefully 
pulverized as fast as plowed. After each rain (not too 
immediately after) the land must be disked well and har- 
rowed to conserve moisture and yet more perfectly com- 
plete the pulverization. The seed must be sown when the 
soil is stored well with moisture beneath and in a com- 
pact, mellow condition. It must be lightly covered. 
Given these conditions, success is almost certain. 

Feeding Timothy Meadows. — Timothy is a crop rather 
exhaustive to the soil. This is especially true if it is 
grown in nearly a pure stand without clover. The "run- 
*ning-out" of timothy meadows is more often the result 
of exhaustion of readily available plant food than of any 
other factor. It pays largely to feed timothy meadows 
and feed them well. Experience of older countries like 
England and Scotland is all in favor of feeding grass- 
lands, great profit resulting therefrom. Now that the 
manure spreader has come to nearly every stock-farm it 
affords an easy way to rejuvenate a timothy meadow. At 



34 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

any time after the hay is taken off, manure may be spread 
evenly over the meadow. Care should be taken to break 
up large masses so that the grass may not be smothered, 
and it should be spread so evenly that while all will be 
covered, yet the grasses will be seen peering through. If 
now this manure has been reinforced with something car- 
rying phosphorus, say with acid phosphate, using about 
40 pounds to the ton of manure, or with "floats," (finely- 
ground phosphatic rock) using 100 pounds or more to 
the ton of manure, the fertilization will be quite complete 
and very effective. No fear need be felt that the manure 
will damage the next year's hay crop. The rains of fall 
and winter will have so decayed it that it will practically 
have melted into the soil before another year. Eight to 
12 tons to the acre make a good fertilization, though 
much less will serve and give marked results in the suc- 
ceeding hay crop. I have taken more than 3 tons of tim- 
othy from an acre of land top-dressed with manure. The 
same land untreated W'Ould hardly have yielded one ton, 
and with hay worth $12 per ton it is plain that the 8 tons 
of manure applied brought return of $24 or $3 per ton. 
Furthermore, there was left considerable residual fertility 
in the%oil which subsequent crops of hay and corn recov- 
ered. Where manure is not available timothy meadows 
are very responsive to artificial fertilization. 

Fertili::ers on Timothy Meadows. — Quite a large num- 
ber of field experiments wath fertilizers on timothy are 
recorded. The grass seems unusually responsive to good 
fertilization. Wheeler and Adams working at the Rhode 
Island Experiment Station reported* in 1902 experiments 

* Bulletin 82, Rhode Island Experiment Station. 



FERTILIZING MEADOWS 



35 



on meadows of mixed grasses, 1 5 pounds of timothy sown 
with 7 pounds of red clover and 7^ pounds of redtop. 
Following are given the yields of field-cured hay ob- 
tained, per acre, upon each of the three plots in 1901 : 





Pounds of hay per acre. 


Nitrogenous manures per acre. 


First 
crop. 


Second 
crop. 


Total 
crop. 


Plot 17, none 


3,050 
5,150 
8,750 


240 
400 
640 


3,290 


Plot 19. with 133.52 pounds nitrate of soda 

Plot 21, with 400.56 pounds nitrate of soda*. . . . 


5,550 
9,390 



"Grass from like areas of each plot was harvested in the case of 
the first crop, and assorted for the purpose of ascertaining the 
relative amounts of redtop and timothy which were present. Follow- 
ing is the result of this examination : 

RELATIVE PERCENTAGES OF REDTOP AND TIMOTHY UPON THE 

THREE PLOTS. 



Timothy. 
Redtop . . 



Plot 17. 

Without nitrogenous 

manures. 



20 per cent. 
80 per cent. 



Plot 19. 

With a 3^ ration of 

nitrate of soda. 



Plot 21. 

With a full ration of 

nitrate of soda. 



39 per cent. 
61 per cent. 



67 per cent. 
33 per cent. 



"It will be noted that with each increase in nitrate of soda the 
percentage of timothy showed a marked gain, just as was the case 
with the total yield of hay. The most plausible explanation which 
has suggested itself for this striking result, is the influence upon 
the growth of the crop brought about by the soda of the nitrate 
of soda, by virtue of its tendency to render the soil alkaline. It 
will be recalled that in other experiments at this station, it has 
been demonstrated that redtop is capable of thriving on soil 
too sour (acid) to be suited to timothy and Kentucky bluegrass. 
When nitrate of soda is applied to soils as a manure, plants re- 

*Four hundred pounds of nitrate of soda furnish, about 62 
pounds of nitrogen. 



36 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

move the nitric acid of the nitrate more rapidly than the soda, and 
in consequence, the latter, which is capable of overcoming or 
lessening the soil acidity, tends to accumulate in the soil." 

The plain lesson of this is to sweeten the soil with lime 
before making the meadow. Carbonate of lime (ground 
raw limestone) is the cheapest and best source of alkaline 
base for restoring the sweetness of the soil. It is interest- 
ing to see how, as the soil is fed, the inferior redtop re- 
cedes and the better grass predominates. On this espe- 
cial type of Rhode Island soil (rather markedly deficient 
in fertility) it was found well to use potassium, phos- 
phorus and nitrogen in the following proportions : 807 
pounds of 16 per cent acid phosphate, 200 pounds of mu- 
riate of potash and 400 pounds of nitrate of soda. It is 
very noticeable that fertilization increased the density of 
the stand and excluded weeds. I again quote from Rhode 
Island bulletin 82't 

"In 1900 the following numbers of grass stalks per square foot 
were found upon each of the three plots : 

Plot without nitrogen, 222. 

Plot with a one-third ration of nitrogen, 271. 

Plot with a full ration of nitrogen, 236. 

The greater quantity of nitrate of soda was an important factor 
in maintaining the stand of timothy probably on account of the 
soda left behind, by which the tendency of the soil to become acid 
(sour) was partly counteracted. The largest yield of field-cured 
hay in 1901 was 9,390 pounds, or 4.7 tons per acre, which was 
found to be equivalent to 7,549 pounds, or 3.8 tons, after lying in 
the mow until the following February. An allowance of 20 per cent, 
to cover shrinkage in the barn was found to be excessive except 
in the case of the heaviest crop of the first cutting, in which case 
4.4 tons of field-cured hay were obtained per acre. The hay was, 
in every instance, sufficiently cured to keep in the best condition 
before being weighed and stored in the barn. The quantities of 
plant food removed by the crop were determined. It was found 



USING CHEMICAL MANURES 



37 



that if supplied with everything else that was necessary, the fol- 
lowing amounts of manurial ingredients were removed from the 
soil by 1,000 pounds of field-cured hay, free from clover: 

5.6 to 5.8 pounds of nitrogen. 

14.7 to 16.2 pounds of actual potash (K2O). 

3.3 to 3.5 pounds of phosphoric acid (P2O5). 

"The early application of top-dressing is of vital importance in 
a dry season such as that of 1900, when, notwithstanding the severe 
drouth, 4.1 tons of field-cured hay were harvested per acre. At 
present the great drawback to profitable grass culture in New Eng- 
land is the neglect systematically to top-dress mowing lands and a 
general lack of knowledge of the relative quantities and absolute 
amounts of chemical manures to apply. If every one of the 78,824 
acres of grass land in Rhode Island were treated in an intelligent 
arid economical manner, the increased revenue to the state would 
be enormous. The facts presented ought to emphasize the impor- 
tance of chemical manures." 

In 1902 the experiment was continued, each plot re- 
ceiving phosphorus, potassium and two of them nitro- 
gen. Below are given the quantities of nitrate of soda 
applied per acre, and the amounts of actual nitrogen con- 
tained therein : 





Plot 17. 


Plot 19. 


Plot 21. 


Nitrate of soda 


Pounds. 
None. 
None. 


Pounds. 

138.12 

21.00 


Pounds. 

414.35 

63.00 


Nitrogen in the nitrate of soda 





"The following are the amounts of field-cured hay harvested 
in 1902, upon each of the three plots: 



No. of Plot. 


Amount of nitrogen per acre. 


Pounds of 
hay per acre. 


Plot 17 


Without nitrogen 


2,950 


Plot 19 


With 21 pounds of nitrate nitrogen 


4,850 


Plot 21 


With 63 pounds of nitrate nitrogen 


8,200 









38 



MEADOWS AND PASTURES 



"In 1901 a carefwl examination was made to determine the rela- 
tive percentages of the two chief grasses on each of the three 
plots. It was found on the plot without nitrogen that these per- 
centages for timothy and redtop were 20 and 80 respectively, 
upon the plot with one-third ration of nitrogen they were 39 and 
61, and where the full ration of nitrogen was used they were 67 
and 33. Similar though perhaps more marked differences were 
noticed this season. This is the fourth successive demonstration 
of the importance of nitrate of soda in maintaining a stand of 
timothy. 

An interesting and important finding from these ex- 
periments was that timothy grown on land well supplied 
with nitrogen was itself richer in that element. Nitro- 
gen is the element from which protein is largely com- 
posed and it is well known that feeds rich in nitrogen are 
most costly to purchase and best adapted to building body 
tissues in animals and to making milk. That this experi- 
ment in Rhode Island paid well the following financial 
results per acre in 1902 show: 





Plot 17. 

Without 

nitrogen. 


Plot 19. 

With a H ration 

of nitrogen. 


Plot 21. 

With a full 

ration of nitrogen. 


Tons of field-cured hay 


1.475 
1.280 

$20.48 
13.04 


2.425 
2.042 

$32.67 
16.15 


4.100 


Tons of barn-cured hay 


3.444 


Value of crop based upon $16 per 
ton for barn-cured hay* 

Cost of the manures t 


$55.10 
22.36 






Difference 


$7.44 


$16.52 


$32.74 







"Comparing the results upon plots 17 and 19, it will be seen that 
an extra outlay of $3.11 for nitrate of soda 'on plot 19 gave an 

*The actual price of hay has been considerably in excess of the 
value used in th's estimate. 

tMuriate of potash valued at $42, acid phosphate at $15, and 
nitrate of soda at $45 per ton, respectively. These prices are 
above what most of the goods could certainly have been bought 
for early in the season. 



PASTURING TIMOTHY 39 

additional net profit of $9.08. Comparing the data in the case of 
plots 17 and 21, it will be seen that an expenditure of $9.32 for 
nitrate of soda resulted in an additional net profit of $25.30 per 
acre. In order to show more clearly the increase in the profits from 
the use of liberal amounts of nitrate of soda, the value of the 
crop over that of the manures is given for the plot without nitrate 
of soda, for that with a one-third ration, and for that with a full 
ration of the nitrate. These data show the results secured for the 
entire period of four years already covered by the experiment, as 
follows : 

PLOT NO. 17, WITHOUT NITROGEN. 

Value of the crop over that of the manures* in 1899..$ 6.09 
Value of the crop over that of the manures in 1900... 13.42 
Value of the crop over that of the manures in 1901... 12.13 
Value of the crop over that of the manures in 1902... 7.44 

Total for the four years $39.08 

PLOT NO. 19, WITH A ONE-THIRD RATION OF NITRATE OF SODA. 

(21 LBS. OF NITROGEN PER ACRE.) 

Value of the crop over that of the manures! in 1899 ... $14.34 
Value of the crop over that of the manures in 1900... 20.37 
Value of the crop over that of the manures in 1901... 23.97 
Value of the crop over that of the manures in 1902... 16.52 



Total for the four years $75.20 

Pasturhig Timothy. — Timothy is not well adapted to 
being pastured. Animals grazing it close soon destroy it. 
The bulbs must have chance to develop and store them- 
selves with nutriment for the following year, and pastur- 
ing would not allow this. It is injurious to a timothy 
meadow to pasture it after the hay has been cut. The 
one exception to this rule is, should there be danger of 
so much aftermath lying on the ground that it will en- 
danger smothering or harbor too large a number of field 
mice, it may be well to pasture lightly in the fall. There 
is a time in late spring when the weed commonly called 

♦Potash and phosphoric acid. tPotash. phosphoric acid, and 
nitrogen. 



40 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

whitetop (Erigeronannuus) appears and threatens greatly 
to injure the market quahty of the timothy hay. If sheep 
are put in for a time (before the timothy is jointed) they 
will eat out most of the whitetop and leave the meadow 
clean. Care must be taken not to let the sheep remain 
long enough to eat down the timothy, or the cure will be 
as bad as the disease, unless the season proves very moist 
and favoring. Sheep on timothy in winter will nearly 
destroy it by eating the bulbs, which are tender and nour- 
ishing. 

Mice in Timothy Meadozvs. — The common short-tailed 
meadow mouse is a great pest in timothy. It lives on the 
bulbs which are sweet and nutritious. I have found the 
underground burrows of these mice packed full of tim- 
othy bulbs. The remedy for mice is to have many cats 
about the farm, feeding them milk at the barns, to pro- 
tect sparrow and other small hawks, and to scatter poi- 
soned grain about in the meadows where their runs 
abound, doing this so far as possible in such manner as 
not to destroy innocent wild birds and domestic animals. 
Quail seldom if ever eat shelled corn which mice greedily 
devour. 

Do not Clip Timothy too Close. — Close-cutting of tim- 
othv meadows is most injurious to them. I have tested 
this thing well and have nearly destroyed meadows by 
very close cutting. At least two of the lower joints of 
the stem should be left if the future good of the meadow 
is considered. 

The Life of a Timothy Meadoiv. — There are soils so 
well suited naturally to timothy grass that meadows of 
it may endure thereon for many years. Ordinarily, in 



TIMOTHY LEADS TO PASTURE 41 

the cornbelt region, timothy is more profitable the first 
and second years after sowing than it ever is afterward. 
Kentucky bkiegrass runs into it wherever the soil is fairly 
rich in lime. Timothy declines in vigor, owing) no doubt 
usually to lack of feeding and to hard pasturing in the 
fall after hay has been cut. Doubtless with good feed- 
ing on suitable, moist, rich soil in cool climates timothy 
can be kept for six or even lo years, but for most farm- 
ers its profitable life will be found to be but two. three 
or , four years ; then it will need plowing and the land 
planted to some other crop allowing good clean cultiva- 
tion, with enriching, after which the timothy may be re- 
sown. 

Timothy as a Bridging Pasture. — While not a good 
grass for permanent pasture, except in mixture, timothy 
is one of the most useful crops that can be sown with 
other grasses where one wishes something on which ani- 
mals may feed while other and slower grasses are becom- 
ing established. Thus in making a bluegrass pasture, 
timothy may well be sown with bluegrass and will afford 
grazing for a year or two while the bluegrass is becom- 
ing established. 

SUMMARY. 

Timothy is perhaps the easiest established of cultivated 
grasses. It is the standard hay grass. It is of rather 
low nutritive value compared with alfalfa or even when 
compared with other grasses, its protein content being 
quite low. It has, however, considerably more pro- 
tein in its composition when cut early. Probably the 
greatest feeding value is obtained by cutting timothy when 



42 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

in bloom or very soon afterward. Clovers enrich timothy 
hay and add much to its thrift and yield. Alfalfa grows 
well with timothy on dry, rich soils having enough lime. 
Timothy rapidly exhausts the soil of nitrogen and tim- 
othy meadows are wonderfully helped by applications of 
stable manure or fertilizers. When fertilizers are used 
they should contain a considerable amount of nitrogen. 
Timothy is a short-lived pasture grass and for best re- 
sults as meadow should be very lightly pastured in the 
fall or left untouched. It is a good temporary pasture 
to afford feed while bluegrass is coming in. 

Redtop {Agrostis alba). — It is curious how plants find 
their best-suited environment ; each one has its place. The 
place for redtop is on soil rather moist, deficient in lime 
and somewhat deficient in fertility. Not that redtop will 
not thrive in rich soil, but it will endure a degree of soil 
poverty that timothy and Kentucky bluegrass will not 
endure. When one has a soil that is not quite rich enough 
nor dry enough for timothy one may hope to get a vig- 
orous growth of redtop. Indeed it will almost grow in 
the water. Redtop is a slender grass somewhat of the 
type of Kentucky bluegrass but taller-growing, with a 
creeping underground root-stock which makes it spread 
rather fast and soon form on suitable soil a dense sod. 
It grows 2' or more high and yields from i to 2 tons of 
hay per acre. It makes good pasture. It is not so soon 
established as timothy but increases in thickness for sev- 
eral years after sowing. Redtop is a variable grass, as- 
suming new characters in each different situation. In 
England it is declared to be of little growth. In New 
England it is considered a good hay and fine grazing. 



THE MERITS OF REDTOP 



43 




Redtop (Agrostis Vulgaris), 



44 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

Prof. J. B. Killibrew declares that in Tennessee "It will 
grow upon every soil and give more general satisfaction 
than any other grass. It is scattered over the whole state 
of Tennessee. The writer has seen it growing vigorously 
on the highest mountains of east Tennessee as well as in 
the deepest valleys, on the sandstone soil of the Cumber- 
land table land and on the cherty soils of the highland 
rim. It sparkles in the beauty of its verdure on the lime- 
stone soils of the central basin and acquires its largest 
growth in the sandy river and creek basins of west Ten- 
nessee. There is no place in Tennessee in which it does 
not prove a profitable grass to the farmers." 

Redtop will grow as far south as New Orleans and in 
north Louisiana is sometimes sown for pasture and hay; 
it will yield well on the moist bottoms throughout all 
the South. While it makes good grazing it is not so nu- 
tritious nor so well liked as bluegrass. It is, however, 
much more adaptable to soils and climates than bluegrass. 
It contains more protein than timothy. Animals com- 
monly prefer timothy and farmers prefer it because it 
yields more. Redtop, they say, is a good grass when one 
is not ready to get a better one. It has the widest range 
of any grass in America, from the gulf to the northern 
limits of agriculture in Canada, from the Atlantic Sea- 
board (where because of lime shortage in the soil it is 
common) to the high meadows and parks of the western 
mountains. 

To oust redtop and get timothy or bluegrass instead, 
one has but to drain, cure the acidity of the land, and 
make it fertile. Ordinarily the use of 2 to 8 tons to the 
acre of finely-ground raw limestone or 2 to 3 tons of air- 



REDTOP FOR FRESH FORAGE 45 

slaked lime will restore the alkalinity of the soil, and then 
manure or fertilizers will afford food for the better grass- 
es. As redtop holds the land in a dense growth, it may 
be necessary to plow, till and reseed in order quickly to 
displace it. Redtop is not to be despised and when one's 
land is not ready for a better grass or one's climate fa- 
vors, one should utilize it. Garman of the Kentucky Ex- 
periment Station reports in comparative yields of fresh 
forage. Redtop, 4.80 tons to the acre; Bromus inermis, 
7.20; Orchard grass, 8.40; Timothy, 7.12; Canada blue- 
grass, 2.64 ; Kentucky bluegrass, 4.08. It is evident then 
that the generally conceded superiority of bluegrass over 
redtop lies in its greater palatability and somewhat su- 
perior nutrition. It is notable that while analyses in 
America report redtop to be fairly nutritious, at least as 
much so as timothy, in England it is disliked and de- 
nounced. Sir J. B. Lawes says : "It flourishes most on 
dry soils and is a troublesome weed on arable land, dis- 
liked by cattle and sheep. It is reported as useless and 
should be discouraged as much as possible. In manur- 
ing the land the proportion of this grass was very much 
reduced in everv^ instance, a result certainly not to be re- 
gretted." 

To sum up opinions concerning redtop, it is not a 
grass of first quality; it suits certain soils, and is adapt- 
able as to climates. It thrives in high mountain valleys 
and on wet land and on land deficient in lime and fer- 
tility. Drainage, limestone and fertility will bring in bet- 
ter grasses. 

Qtianftty of Seed. — Redtop seed in the chaff weighs 
about 10 to 12 pounds per bushel, the recleaned seed 35 



46 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

pounds. It is commonly sown with wheat in the fall, lO 
to 15 pounds of recleaned seed or double that of seed in 
the chaff being used. It may also be sown alone very- 
early in spring or with a nurse-crop of oats or barley 
which should be mown off for hay when in bloom. 

Orchard Grass (Dactyhis glomerata). — This is the 
cock's foot grass of England and the English colonies. 
It grows 3' to 5' high. Most of the weight of hay is 
from the leaves near the ground. It is one of our best 
grasses. It is not much in use as yet for several reasons. 
Orchard grass seed is not so easily sown as timothy seed 
nor in so abundant supply. It is, however, easy to get a 
stand of orchard grass and it is a vigorous, thrifty grass 
yielding much leafy forage and a fair amount of hay. It 
yields about the same amount of hay as timothy and the 
hay is much richer in protein if cut at the right time. As 
a pasture grass, it is a little richer than timothy and about 
half as rich in protein as bluegrass. At the Kentucky 
station orchard grass yielded in green forage cut June 
12, 8.4 tons to the acre; dry hay, 3.6 tons. Timothy cut 
July 2 yielded of fresh forage, 7.12 tons; dry hay, 3.68 
tons. Kentucky bluegrass cut June 11 yielded, fresh, 
4.8; dry hay, 1.68. Bromus inermis cut June 17, fresh, 
7.2 ; dry hay, 3.04. It is evident from these comparisons, 
v/hich I think are fairly typical, that orchard grass is of 
great merit, judging it by its yield and quality. It must 
also be considered that orchard grass mown so early will 
yield a good deal of good aftermath which may be grazed 
with no injury to the sward, if not grazed too closely, 
while timothy is seriously hurt by grazing after the hay 
has been cut. 



ORCHARD GRASS 



47 




Orchard Grass (Dactylis glomerata). 



48 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

Why is orchard grass so little used? Mainly because 
the seed costs more than timothy and it takes more of it. 
Timothy seed at present (June 15, 1910) is worth $6 per 
100 pounds; orchard grass, $16, Further, it is customary 
to sow three times as much orchard grass seed as timothy 
seed to the acre. To offset this fact, it must be remem- 
bered that orchard grass lasts much longer than timothy ; 
in truth, on suitable soil, it lasts indefinitely, and even 
spreads to adjacent fields, encroaching on bluegrass. I 
have watched the behavior of this grass in many states 
and am assured that it has much more value than is com- 
monly ascribed to it. Animals much prefer to eat blue- 
grass or brome grass and so it is not wise to mix orchard 
grass with these grasses. When orchard grass is used 
as pasture it should be fenced to itself, not left adjacent 
to another pasture of bluegrass, since animals will neg- 
lect the orchard grass for the better-liked forage. It is 
thought that cattle will put on more fat grazing bluegrass 
than orchard grass. While this may be true, yet as or- 
chard grass yields about twice as much per acre it might 
easily make the most pounds of beef. Henry Fairfax 
of Loudoun Co., Va., likes orchard grass and makes 
horse pastures of it. His horses are as good as are pro- 
duced anywhere. On the other hand, his neighbor, E. 
B. White, destroys orchard grass and replaces it with 
bluegrass. Both men are very successful, which is a curi- 
ous illustration of the difficulty of reaching truth from 
observing the farm practices of others. 

On Woodland Farm we have one pasture of orchard 
grass that carries annually a great burden of live stock. 
Orchard grass is a rank feeder, and this pasture is occa- 



ORCHARD GRASS FOR GRAZING 



49 



sionally covered over thinly with stable manure. Here it 
has been observed that while animals graze the orchard 
grass well they gnaw close the spots where bluegrass 
grows. After orchard grass gets old and rank, say by the 
middle of June, animals do not like to graze it. Rank 
spots in pastures should therefore be mown and made in- 
to hay, after which the fresh new grass will be grazed as 
it comes up and the field will be thus eaten off together. 




Growth of Orchard Grass April 10 in Tennessee. 

I have observed that where a great burden of grass was 
left on the land all winter, it sometimes smothered out 
the roots, so there is no economy in not using it either by 
grazing or mowing or both. 

It will not do at all to mix brome grass (Bromus iner- 
mis) with orchard grass, although at first thought it 
would seem an ideal mixture, as the brome grass has a 
great tendency to thicken up by underground stems while 
orchard grass is inclined to grow in bunches. The chief 



50 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

objection to mixing these grasses is that animals like 
brome grass so much better than orchard grass that they 
will not touch the latter while they can get the brome, 
which is soon weakened by too close grazing and finally 
nearly disappears. When used as a meadow, this mix- 
ture would do very well. 

Brome Grass {Bromiis inermis). — Brome grass is of 
rather recent introduction from Europe. It is prized in 
south-eastern Europe for both hay and pasture. It was 
introduced by the Department of Agriculture and dissem- 
inated throughout the West and Northwest in the hope 
that it might prove adapted to the semi-arid regions. This 
hope has been in part realized. It is fairly drouth-resist- 
ant. It will not make much growth during dry weather, 
but it survives to grow when rain comes. Brome grass 
makes considerable hay of nutritious quality if cut early. 
It is hardy and one of the first grasses to start in spring ; 
nor is it cut down by frost till all else is killed. As a pas- 
ture grass in regions adapted to its growth, it is doubt- 
ful whether there is a better. It out-yields Kentucky blue- 
grass by lOO per cent, and animals like it fully as well, 
often indeed preferring it. The forage is tender, juicy 
and sweet. Brome grass is a vigorous perennial with 
stems 2' to 5' high, rather broad blades like oats, slender 
seed stalks, a wealth of leaves lower down and a habit 
of making a good deal of second growth of blades after 
being mown off. It has a habit of thickening and spread- 
ing by strong creeping root-stocks, so that a thin stand 
soon thickens and indeed the danger is that the sod may 
become so interlaced with roots and the stems so crowded 
that the growth will be very short. When the grass thus 



BROME GRASS 



51 



m 



o 




u 



bd 




52 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

becomes sod-bound it is common to plow it or disk it 
thoroughly, when it will in a short time reestablish itself 
and produce well again. 

Brome grass makes nutritious and palatable hay, if cut 
early, the best time being when the heads are in flower. 
There will afterward be a considerable growth of leaves 
that may be mown or depastured. Brome grass is very 
easily established if fresh seed is sown. I have had best 
success sowing it quite early in spring on a well-prepared 
seedbed. It should never be sown alone but with some 
sort of clover or alfalfa. Alone, brome grass often be- 
comes unproductive through its exhaustion of the nitro- 
gen from the soil; mixed with clovers or alfalfa it re- 
mains productive for a very much longer time. 

Quantity of Seed. — The seed of brome grass is light, 
weighing about 14 pounds to the bushel and 20 pounds 
are commonly sown to the acre. If sown with clovers I 
would use less, seeking to get a full stand of clover or al- 
falfa and a thin stand of brome grass, after which it will 
rapidly thicken itself by means of its many creeping un- 
derground stems. In time it will probably take posses- 
sion of the land and after a while need either fertilization 
or plowing and reseeding. The Nebraska Experiment 
Station showed that unproductive brome grass could be 
made to yield well by simply disking it thoroughly and 
sowing clover in it. 

There are some dangers in brome grass seeding. One 
is that one may get quack grass seed. On Woodland 
Farm, seed sown in 1897, and received from the United 
States Department of Agriculture, was mixed with 
quack grass and brought the first of this grass to the 



TWO VALUABLE FESCUES 53 

farm. One should buy brome grass seed from a repu- 
table seedsman who knows its source. It has been re- 
ported that brome grass is hard to get out of land. We 
have not found this true, but when planted to corn the 
grass is readily subdued and does not return. I would 
not sow brome grass for meadow alone where timothy 
succeeds well nor in the South where it has never suc- 
ceeded except in the higher altitudes. Along the west- 
ern edge of the timothy belt, brome grass is well worthy 
of trial. It shares with meadow fescue the esteem of 
experimenters in Kansas and Nebraska. It is preemi- 
nently a pasture grass. 

Meadozv Fescue and Tall Fescue, (Fesfuca pratensis — 
F. elafior). — It is curious the way American farmers 
follow closely in one another's footsteps and imitate one 
another's farm practices. This is illustrated well in the 
case of the fescues. They are admirable grasses, more 
nutritious and palatable than timothy, larger yielding 
than Kentucky bluegrass, far better from the viewpoint 
of the animals than orchard grass or redtop, yet one can 
travel very far and see not one field of meadow fescue. 
I once rode more than half way across Ohio by automo- 
bile and scanned closely the wayside fields to see what 
was growing within. I saw abundant fields of timothy, 
many fields of red clover, a few of alfalfa, much blue- 
grass of two sorts, a few bits of orchard grass, more of 
redtop and not one of meadow fescue. It was not be- 
cause the grass was not adapted to the soil, because along 
the roadsides it had come of its own accord, curiously 
enough, and oftentimes was displacing bluegrass. Prob- 
ably the reason why farmers do not sow more fescues is 



54 



MEADOWS AND PASTURES 




Meadow Fescue (Festuca Elatior). 



MERITS OF MEADOW FESCUE 55 

that they are not often offered by seed dealers and when 
they are bought the seed may be old and poor or adulter- 
ated, so that one does not get what one desires. Certain 
it is that they are well worth a wider field than they now^ 
have. As it is, meadow fescue is now prized in eastern 
Kansas and in parts of Washington and Oregon. In Eu- 
rope too meadow fescue is one of the highly prized 
grasses both for pasture and meadow, and is a component 
part of nearly every mixture. Englishmen nearly always 
sow grass mixtures, seldom a grass alone. 

Meadow fescue is a perennial growing about 3' high. 
F. elatior is a taller-growing species or variety. It is 
commonly called ''tall meadow fescue" or ''Randall 
grass" or "evergreen grass." These fescues spread rather 
slowly from the root, and lack that vigorous suckering 
habit that belongs to the poas, brome grass and redtop. 
They endure a long time in suitable soils, once established. 
It endures dry weather well. It is thus a good grass for 
regions a little too far west for timothy. It is "nip and 
tuck" between meadow fescue and brome grass in the es- 
teem of some western farmers, though brome grass has 
the advantage of spreading and thickening when one gets 
a partial stand. These grasses do not yield so much hay 
as timothy. Practically speaking, I think meadow fes- 
cue should be in all meadow mixtures and in most pas- 
ture mixtures*. It associates well wnth other grasses and 
endures for a long time in the soil, far longer than tim- 
othy. 

Quantity of Seed to Sow. — The seed of meadow fes- 
cue weighs 22 pounds to the bushel; of tall fescue 14 
pounds. If sown alone a bushel of seed would be none 



56 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

too much for an acre. It seems that the great place for 
these fescues in America is in mixtures. 

Sheep Fescue. — While not a meadow grass, we may 
as well mention this little grass at this time. It makes 
very dense tufts of narrow, rather hard, deep green, al- 
most blue blades with rather few seed stems. It grows 
about i' high. It is frequently advised as a good grass 
for poor pastures and for sheep. I recall with lively 
interest climbing steep hill pastures in the south of 
England that were carpeted with this grass and that 
were so slippery with it that I could hardly stand. The 
sheep seemed to eat the cultivated crops in the folds be- 
low to the bare earth, leaving their fescue almost un- 
touched. In an effort to have a good example of it on 
Woodland Farm I have sown considerable seed with the 
net result of a few scattered plants. It is apparently 
of no value except as an admixture for poor pastures. 
Garman reports, however, that wdth him it yielded at the 
rate of 2.24 tons of dry hay to the acre, at Lexington, 
Ky. 

The Rye Grasses. — Of the Loliums there are about 
20 species, distributed about the north temperate zone. 
Of these two are in use through cultivation, L. perenne, 
and Loliinn perenne, var. Italicuni, or perennial rye grass, 
and Italian rye grass. Neither grass is much in use in 
America. The Italian rye grass is at best a short-lived 
grass, living but a year or two ; the perennial rye grass 
lives for two to five years and by seeding itself seems 
to live longer. 

Rye grasses are easily established and make a rather 
large amount of hay. The perennial rye grass is com- 



THE RYE GRASSES 



57 




Sheep Fescue (Festuca ovina). 



58 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

monly called ''English" rye grass. It is largely in use 
in England l3ut almost unknown in America except west 
of the Cascade Mountains on the Pacific Coast. Animals 
prefer rye grasses to most other cultivated grasses, the 
seed is usually good and the grass makes a great amount, 
as much as 40 bushels to the acre, so that the farmer 
can save his own seed with ease if he likes. On the 
irrigated plains of northern Italy rye grass makes great 
crops and in England and Scotland where there are 
irrigated farms it is employed and makes as many as four 
cuttings in a year of very heavy forage. Spillman says 
that the sewage meadows near Edinburgh grow rye 
grass and yield enormously ; also that it is grown much 
in western California, Oregon and Washington on the 
moist dyked lands. 

Rye grass was one of the earliest grasses adopted 
into culivation. Spillman remarks that the early English 
husbandmen at first made no attempt to separate the 
various grasses but grew them altogether. Later they 
began saving the seed of rye grass and it has been popu- 
lar ever since. It is said that it was taken to Europe 
from England. The Italian grass sown in the fall makes 
a fine winter lawn for the South, and is considerably 
used in this way. 

From my observations, the rye grasses are probably 
desirable in mixtures for pasture and meadow, and have 
hardly received the attention that they deserve in 
America. 

Quantity of Seed to Sozv. — The seed weighs 20 pounds 
per bushel and commonly about two and one- 
half bushels are sown to the acre. Rye grass is in 



THE RYE GRASSES 



59 




Italian Ryegrass (Lolium perenne). 



60 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

America not so very productive. Garman reported a 
yield of 2.24 tons to the acre for Italian rye grass and 
2.32 tons for perennial rye grass. This is not encourag- 
ing when smooth brome grass made 3.04 tons, orchard 
grass 3.6 tons, and timothy, 3.68 tons. 

Tall Oatgrass. — According to Hunt, tall oatgrass 
(Arrhenatherum clatius) is closely related to the common 
cultivated oat, and also to the common wild oatgrass 
(Danthonia spicata), which forms a portion of the herb- 
age of permanent pastures and meadows on the poorer 
soils of the North Atlantic states. The tall oatgrass is 
a fibrous-rooted, erect, tall grass growing on suitable 
soil 3' to 5' high, with a long open panicle bearing two- 
flowered spikelets. It yields an abundance of coarse 
forage, and will grow on rather sandy soils where other 
grasses do not thrive so w^ell ; but in the United States its 
lack of palatability has prevented its extensive cultiva- 
tion. It is know^n in France as ray grass, where, as in 
other parts of Europe, it is highly prized. The seed is 
principally imported, but it can be easily harvested. It 
may be bound, cured in shocks, and threshed as in case 
of common oats. 

Quantity of Seed to Sow. — There are 150,000 seeds to 
the pound. About 50 pounds of seed with a germinating 
power of 70 per cent are required to sow an acre. Gar- 
man reports a weight of dry hay of 4.08 tons per acre. 
He also says : 

*'Among from 40 to 50 forage plants kept growing on 
the Kentucky Experiment Farm for a number of years, 
tall oatgrass has always, winter and summer, been one 
of the finest in appearance. In the matter of hardiness 



TALL OATGRASS 



61 




Tall Oatgrass (Arrhenatherum avenaceum). 



62 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

and productiveness it has no equal on the farm. It 
stands drouth better than timothy. It has not been af- 
fected by the severest cold weather we have had during 
the past six years. It grows rapidly on poor soil. When 
fully grown about the middle of June it is often 5' in 
height, with a panicle somewhat like that of oats, and 
inclined to droop a little, but not so coarse. After flower- 
ing it soon becomes rather woody and should on this 
account be cut promptly before the panicles mature. Af- 
ter cutting, a new growth of blades appears, that might 
furnish either pasture or hay. The experience of Amer- 
ican farmers who have tried this grass is in its favor, but 
British farmers say it is bitter and unfit for either hay 
or pasture. It is at least worthy of trial in Kentucky." 
Johnson Grass. — Johnson grass is a sorghum, ^. hala- 
pense. It masquerades under a good many names, as 
Means' grass. Arabian millet, Egyptian millet, Syrian 
grass and others. It comes from the Orient. In 1835 
Gov. Means of South Carolina obtained seed from Tur- 
key. A few years later William Johnson of Alabama 
began praising it and distributing the seed. Had he 
but known its future he would have been very slow to 
spread its seed. It is a coarse grass, with thick stems, 
usually about 3' to 6' tall. It has a head somewhat like 
broom corn, though much smaller, with sorghum-like 
seeds. The rootstocks are large, often ^2" in diameter; 
creeping and branching, they have a way of ramifying 
all through the soil and each joint can produce a new 
plant. It is a terrific weed when once it gets into a 
cultivated field. A prodigious amount of labor may fail 
to exterminate it once it is established. At the same 



JOHNSON GRASS 



63 




Johnson Grass (Sorghum halapense). 



64 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

time it makes fairly good hay when cut green. It should 
always be cut for hay before the seed forms, else it is 
almost criminal to sell it or move it about the country. 
But there are places where Johnson grass is profitable. 
It thrives in the dry plains of Texas, and makes much 
pasturage and hay on which cattle are fed. It has a 
curious need of being plowed up now and then, else it 
becomes sod-bound and the roots too close to the sur- 
face to thrive. When this occurs it is only necessary 
to plow the land and harrow it well as though one were 
about to destroy the plants entirely and presto! there 
springs up a new, fresh stand which is soon as thick as 
ever. 

In order to keep Johnson grass productive one must 
get some sort of legume to growing with it. On suitable 
lands alfalfa is doubtless the best legume for this pur- 
pose. Sometimes alfalfa not only holds its own but 
actually causes Johnson grass to disappear ; in other soils 
Johnson grass in a few years gets the upper hand of 
alfalfa. 

It is sometimes said that Johnson grass enriches land. 
If the field on which it grows is kept mowed or eaten 
off by animals it can hardly fail rapidly to deplete fer- 
tility, since it gathers no nitrogen from the air and in 
fact nothing except what it takes from the soil. Sugar 
planters bitterly deplore the presence of Johnson grass 
in their fields, and one has declared to me that the labor 
of cultivated sugar cane was fully $20 per acre more in 
fields infested with it. I can not, therefore, advise its 
sowing anywhere that cultivation may sometimes be 
desired and yet it is probably the very best hay grass 



ERADICATING JOHNSON GRASS 65 

yet found for our southern states. To tell of Johnson 
grass and not tell how to get rid of it would be to 
incur the dislike of most of my southern readers. First 
let me advise careful buying of field seeds, especially of 
alfalfa seed, which is sometimes infested with seed of 
this grass. Next consider its habit of growth. It is a 
plant of the tropics ; it can not endure freezing ; any 
roots turned up in the fall so that they freeze will be 
destroyed. This alone will destroy Johnson grass in Ohio, 
Illinois, Kentucky, Missouri, Tennessee and the northern 
ends of all the Gulf States. The fact is, farmers in 
the South are not often provided with suitable plows 
for combatting Johnson grass. The ordinary one-mule 
plow only tickles and invigorates it. Spring-plowing 
does not much hurt it. Each joint of the long, creeping 
root-stocks will grow if left in the ground. Hogs, by 
the way, thrive on these succulent root-stocks. 

Prof. W. J. Spillman has made a careful study of 
Johnson grass and its extermination and declares that 
it is conquerable. He says : 

"The difficulty of dealing with this weed is greatly increased by 
the implements used for tillage on many southern farms. To check 
the grass effectively a good two-horse turning plow is absolutely 
necessary, an implement not found on many small farms. In plowing 
it is necessary to cut and turn over every inch of the land. By 
doing this it is entirely possible to plow a Johnson grass meadow in 
spring, harrow out the rootstocks and make a good cultivated 
crop the same year ; but it requires careful work, and a great deal 
of it, to do so. The grass may be entirely eradicated in a single 
season if the farmer can spare the land and afford the necessary 
labor. The best way to do this is to plow the land with a turnfng- 
plow in the fall, selecting a time when the soil is mellow. Harrow 
out as many rootstocks as possible and remove them from the 



66 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

field. Then sow some winter grain, such as oats, barley or rye. 

Wheat is too late in maturing. The grain should be cut for hay 

in the spring, and the land plowed again immediately and thoroughly 

harrowed, as in the fall previous. Then every time the most forward 

bunches of grass reach 4" to 6" in height, run over the land with 

a heel-scrape or any other implement that shaves off the surface 

of the soil. To be effective this shaving process must be so thorough 

that every sprig of grass is cut. If this is kept up till October every 

vestige of Johnson grass will be destroyed. It may come again 

from seed next year, but the seeding plants may be killed, like any 

other weed, by thorough cultivation. Care should be taken not to 

let any of them get large enough to send out rootstocks before 

destroying them. Some badly infested farms have been freed from 

this pest by the above method. The usual practice is to take one 

field at a time for this treatment, taking several years to extend the 

work of eradication over the whole farm. With a rational system 

of crop rotation, and the thorough working of the soil common 

in the north of England and in many parts of this country, Johnson 

grass would not be a pest, but a valuable adjunct to the list of farm 

crops. The climate of the entire Johnson grass area permits at 

least two crops a year to be grown on every acre of land. A crop 

of winter grain, hay and one or two summer crops of cow-pea hay 

or sorghum hay can be grown on the worst infested land, with little 

or no interference from the grass, if the land is thoroughly plowed 

and harrowed before planting each crop. Better than all, however, 

on land adapted to it, and this includes nearly all the worst areas, 

alfalfa can be sown on Johnson grass land with perfect success. 

To do this the land should plowed and the rootstocks thoroughly 

harrowed out early in the fall. If, after this, a good beating rain 

comes to firm the soil, all the better. Then sow the alfalfa, at the 

rate of 20 pounds of seed per acre, early enough in the fall for it to 

get a good start before cold weather. The next summer cut it 

promptly every time it gets high enough to make a fair crop of 

hay. This treatment helps the alfalfa and greatly discourages the 

Johnson grass. As alfalfa makes four or five crops of hay a year 

in the South (six to nine in some places), and Johnson grass only 

three, and as Johnson grass gradually declines in yield anyway, so 

that it yields very little three or four years after the last plowing, 

the alfalfa will, in a few years, be practically free fro'm the grass. 

What little is left actually improves the quality of the alfalfa hay." 



PARA AND GUINEA GRASSES 67 

The difficulty in eradicating Johnson grass arises 
largely from the inherent quality in the human mind to 
let ''pretty well" alone. Thus when the grass is fairly 
well subdued there is danger that the owner will relax 
his vigilance, just when he should redouble his efforts. 
It can be eradicated, but the nearer one is to that de- 
sired goal the more intense should be his efforts. Salt 
will not kill Johnson grass, but kerosene oil is said to 
do so ; it might be an efficient aid when once the grass 
was reduced to a small number of plants. 

Para grass (Panicitm mollc) , and Guinea grass (Pani- 
cinn maxiinnm). — These two grasses are of great use 
in Cuba and other tropical regions. They have been 
introduced in a small way into Florida and southern 
Louisiana. They are quite unlike in their manner of 
growth. Para grass likes rich, moist or even wet land. 
It is planted from slips or the roots are obtained. These, 
when pushed into the prepared soil during the dormant 
season, take root and send out long runners that lie 
close on the ground. After the ground is well covered 
with these leafy runners, upright stems appear. Para 
grass is used mostly for pasturage and makes on rich 
soil an astonishing amount. Guinea grass, according to 
many writers, is the best of tropical grasses. Of it says 
Prof. Frank S. Earle of the Cuban Department of Agri- 
culture : 'Tt is the best pasture and hay grass in the 
world. It is usually planted by slips. The para grass 
is rather a bad weed in some soils, about as bad as John- 
son grass. It thrives best in low, half-swampy places. 
It yields enormously on lands that would not be fit for 
anything else." 



68 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

Neither of these grasses will yield much forage on poor 
soils, even in Florida. 

CEREALS AND ANNUAL GRASSES FOR HAY. 

There are situations where it is best to sow some 
grass that will make a crop of hay soon after sowing. 
There are regions where summer drouths make perennial 
meadows impracticable, and there are emergencies on 
most farms that make it expedient to sow some seed that 
will quickly return to the farmer a crop of hay. Quite 
a wide range of plants can be used for such purposes. 

Wheat Hay. — In California winter wheat is the almost 
universal hay, besides alfalfa. It is not so much sown 
for hay as it is cut from the boundaries of the fields to 
open places for the harvesters that follow as soon as the 
wheat has ripened its grain. Cut before the grain has 
formed, or just as it is forming, the straw is full of 
sweet sap and the whole plant is palatable and nutritious. 
Horses and mules work well on wheat hay, which is, 
indeed, preferred by such animals to alfalfa. Barley is 
used in the same manner. In eastern America rye is 
sometimes cut for hay. In northern America oats and 
peas sown together make excellent forage, and while 
commonly fed green are sometimes cured into hay. 

Time to Cut Cereals for Hay. — A principle involved 
in choosing the time to cut any grain for hay is that 
at blooming time the plant has gathered from the soil 
about all that it will gather; it has stored in its sap 
nearly all the nutrients that later will go to make the 
grain. After bloom, the nutrients are gathered into 
the grain and the stem steadily accumulates wood and 



CEREALS FOR HAY 69 

loses its nourishing qualities, while the grain gains in 
weight and perfection. The lesson is plain : if one wishes 
grain he should let it ripen; if he wishes hay he should 
cut before the grain forms, after bloom and while the 
nutritious sap is all through the structure of the plant. 
Then all of the plant will be eaten and none wasted. 
Also there will be none of the annoyance of rats and 
mice burrowing through the mow in search of grain. 

Winter Wheat for Hay. — Probably one of the smooth 
wheats (not bearded) will be found best of any of the 
common cereals for hay. There are many varieties of 
wheat and one can find them adapted to almost all soils 
and situations. In testing wheat, oats and rye for forage 
in Louisiana on rich alluvial buckshot soil, I was aston- 
ished to find how much superior the wheat proved to 
either of the other cereals both in weight of yield and 
palatability. Rye, a vigorous and worthy crop in north- 
ern situations, proved the poorest of all. 

Winter Wheat and Vetches for Forage. — Many ex- 
periments in Mississippi, Alabama and Louisiana have 
shown winter wheat and winter vetches to make the most 
and best forage to be mown ofT in early spring or during 
the winter in far southern latitudes of anything yet test- 
ed. Cereals and the legumes, furthermore, balance each 
other very well. 

CEREALS FOR HAY. 

Rye Hay. — Rye makes as poor hay as one could de- 
sire. If it must be used for this purpose mow it as 
soon as it begins to shoot, not waiting for it to head 
at all. 



70 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

Rye as Soiling Crop. — For soiling rye has its use, 
especially in regions of poor soil and rigorous climate. 
It is always a forage deficient in protein, and its chief 
good is as a filler and a provider of succulence in rations. 

Beardless Sprijig Barley as Hay. — Beardless spring 
barley makes an exceedingly good nurse-crop for clover 
or alfalfa. Its merits are that it does not usually lodge, 
and being not very prolific does not too much shade 
the young legumes. It is best cut for hay just before 
the grain forms, since it thus affords its maximum 
amount of feeding value, and, getting out of the way, 
gives the alfalfa or clover opportunity to grow. 

Rescue Grass (Bromus unoiloides). — This grass is al- 
lied to the cheat grasses. It is hardy, makes pretty good 
winter grazing in the South, and has been considerably 
exploited. I do not see that it is any better than wheat 
and usually seems inferior, though the seed should be 
less expensive, and to some extent it will reseed itself. 
Seedsmen oftentimes substitute cheat seed for rescue 
and thus make good profit, as cheat is a weed seed 
that is found in large amounts in wheat and separated 
by millers. Spillman says that cheat is by no means 
as good a grass as rescue grass. Unless it is desired that 
the grass shall in a manner perpetuate itself by self- 
sowing, I should choose wheat or oats rather than res- 
cue grass for the South. This is the "Arctic grass" of 
some seedsmen. 

THE MILLETS. 

The millets are of a very ancient and honorable fam- 
ily of cultivated plants. Our ancestors found them 
edible and began their cultivation — perhaps as early as 



MILLETS AS DROUTH CROPS 71 

they did wheat. Spillman says there are four great 
famiHes of millets, three of which are in common use 
and have been used as food for man, the most common 
being the so-called German millets, Hungarian grass 
and the like. These grasses belong to the botanical 
species Chaetochloa italica. The second group com- 
prises the broomcorn millets. Millions of men live 
on the seeds of these millets, while our ancestors cer- 
tainly in Europe ate the German millets, as we find their 
seeds in the old lake dwellings and kitchen middings 
of Europe. The third group comprises the Japanese 
millets cultivated extensively in parts of Japan and China 
as food for man and beast. The fourth is Pearl millet 
(Pennisetum spicatum). 

■ Millets Dry Weather Crops. — The millets seem nearly 
all of them to be adapted to conditions of relative scarcity 
of rainfall. In the United States Spillman has shown 
that millets (German millet, Hungarian grass and their 
relatives) are mostly grown in Kansas, Nebraska, both 
Dakotas, northwest Missouri, somewhat in Iowa, north- 
ern Illinois, and on the black soils of Texas. Millet 
comes in where timothy is uncertain and forage is needed. 
As it is sown in the spring the land can have good cul- 
ture to aid it in holding its moisture during hot, dry 
weather following. It is also a quick-growing crop 
that may be sown as late as June, perhaps on land de- 
voted previously to some crop that failed. It is often 
called in as a help when one sees a hay famine im- 
pending, and in this use there is good. For a compre- 
hensive account of the millets I direct the reader to 
Spillman's 'Tarm Grasses of the United States/' and 



^2 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

to Hunt's 'The Forage and Fibre Crops of America." 
They do not properly belong in my scheme of meadows 
and pastures because being annual plants they can not 
be used in any plan of permanent meadowland. 

Sowing Millets. — I may say, however, that the millets 
should not be sown till the earth is warm in the spring. 
Often one will get best results from sowing in June. 
The millets revel in hot weather. 

Quantity of Seed to Sow. — A bushel of millet seed 
weighs from 48 to 50 pounds. From i to 4 pecks of seed 
are sown to the acre, depending on the soil. With 
good soil and a good seedbed a peck of seed will pro- 
duce more forage than a heavier seeding. If grown for 
the seed a peck to the acre is sufficiently heavy seeding. 
Under favorable conditions 3 to 4 tons of hay or 20 to 
80 bushels of seed per acre are secured. 

When to Cut Millet. — The time to cut millet hay 
is when in bloom and before the seed form. Millet 
hay sometimes injuriously affects horses fed on it be- 
cause of its effect on the kidneys. When cut early 
enough and fed in moderation it seems a satisfactory 
forage for most animals. Spillman calls attention to 
the fact that it is somewhat richer in protein than is 
timothy. Millet is a heavy feeder and by no means 
enriches land on which it is grown. It is so rank in 
its growth, and shades the land so well, that it smothers 
out many weeds. It is said to destroy even Canada 
thistles and quack grass, though such reports must be 
taken with a grain of allowance. Doubtless it would 
set these pests back not a little if a good stand were 
obtained and it grew over them and shaded them. 



CONCLUSIONS : GRASSES FOR HAY 7Z 

The millets are not at all adapted to use as nurse- 
crops for clovers or other grasses. It has been my ob- 
servation that many men sow millet occasionally, but 
few care for the crop in regular use. In Ohio I have 
known few men to sow millet tw^o years in succession. 
Doubtless the fact that the market does not call for 
millet hay has considerable influence. 

summary: grasses for meadows. 

Farm practice seems to be about abreast with good 
science in the matter of grass meadows, Timothy is 
the almost universal meadow grass and deserves the 
place wherever there is enough moisture, lime, fertility 
and not too much heat. The other grasses are almost 
all inferior to timothy in point of yield, ease of estab- 
lishment and general adaptability to a farm scheme. In 
dry soils north of the Ohio River brome grass seems 
the best meadow grass, especially desirable for the Da- 
kotas, Nebraska and farther west. There is danger in 
sowing brome grass that one may get seed of quack 
grass. Timothy seed is easily distinguished and not 
much adulterated. Orchard grass is a better grass for 
pasture than for hay. Redtop denotes a second-rate 
soil or worse. Meadow fescue has considerable merit 
and is well w^orth putting into mixtures. It seems es- 
pecially well adapted to the soils and climate of Kansas. 

After 30 years' study of grasses I could advise a 
beginner in farming whose land was located within the 
cornbelt no better than this : Drain your land, lime it 
and feed it. Sow timothy, mix with it if you choose 
some meadow fescue and brome grass. Sow red and 



74 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

alsike clover with it. Feed the meadow each year. Mow 
it but once — just as the bloom falls. Pasture lightly 
if it grows up rank in the fall. If timothy does not 
thrive on your soil because of poverty or wetness, take 
redtop. If you wish to combine mowing with pasturage 
take orchard grass. If you are growing for a short 
term of years you may mix in rye grasses if you like; 
they are being steadily discarded in England, once their 
chief stronghold. Timothy will do the trick easiest 
for you, as it is easiest sown and established. 

To the man in the Gulf States I would say : You may 
use timothy and clover also if you have rich soil; sown 
in the fall they Avill give you at least one good hay 
crop but you will find redtop better adapted to your 
climate and more enduring. Better lime your soil if it 
needs it and sow alfalfa; it likes hot suns and the 
grasses do not. Do not sow Johnson grass if you do 
not have it aready, but if you have it sow alfalfa with 
it; cut always before seed forms; it will yield you a lot 
of good hay — nearly better than timothy. 

To the man of Oklahoma, Texas, the dry parts of 
Kansas, Nebraska and New Mexico, where "dry farm- 
ing" is being done : Do not depend much on perennial 
grasses ; they do not root deeply enough. You must till 
your soil each year in order to hold your moisture; 
you can make hay of wheat, oats, barley, sorghum and 
corn. Permanent meadows are for lands with ample 
rainfall. Meadows in permanent grass waste much 
moisture through evaporation from the surface soil. They 
can not be tilled without destroying the grasses that you 
wish to cherish. 



PASTURE GRASSES 75 

And yet there are many splendid native grasses that 
root deep. Bluestem (Ogropyron repens) is one of our 
native western grasses, better than timothy, adapted to 
dry soils in the Northwest. So of the great bunch grass 
of Washington, Oregon and Idaho (Amropyron diver- 
gens) ; it has promise for dry lands but nothing that 
I know is adapted to the dry, hot Southwest but annual 
grasses, as wheat, sorghum and the Kaffir-corns. 

GRASSES FOR PASTURE. 

There is a difference in the requirements of pasture 
and meadow. Meadows are left undisturbed by ani- 
mals; they are mown off once or twice during the year 
and then left to grow up again. Pastures are usually 
fed off nearly constantly all during the growing season, 
and even more or less through the winter season. Some 
grasses are especially adapted to being so fed off: others 
are not. Timothy, easily the first of meadow grasses, 
soon disappears under close pasturing. Even rank John- 
son grass succumbs to close pasturing. Little sheep fes- 
cue would hardly make enough mowing to be gathered 
with the rake, and yet it yields well as a pasture grass. 
Kentucky bluegrass, the almost universal pasture grass 
of America, is a poor hay grass, yet it has made 500 
pounds of beef from one acre in Virginia. A good pas- 
ture grass is not injured by being tread upon by animals' 
hoofs. It thickens itself and heals over scars, grows up 
cheerfully when eaten down and yields tender, palatable 
nutritious herbage. In America it is common to con- 
sider a pasture a permanent thing. Some grasses im- 
prove with age, with the accumulation of a ''sod," a 



76 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

sort of laboratory where nature is performing mysteries. 

The best pastures I know are old pastures. In Eng- 
land also old pastures are often highly esteemed, yet 
there is also a custom to lay down grass and clovers for 
a few years only, feeding them off with sheep or cat- 
tle. The rye grasses and fescues, indeed a very long 
list of grasses, are added to a pasture or grazing mix- 
ture. They do not highly esteem our all but universal 
Kentucky bluegrass. They complain that it soon takes 
possession of the land and displaces coarser and larger- 
yielding grasses. 

Kentucky Bluegrass (Poa pratensis). 

Ever smelt Kentucky grass, 

Or heard about its blueness? 
Seems as if the whole blamed world 

Was bursting out with newness. 

Skies and folks alike all smiles, 

Gracious ! you are lucky 
If you spend a day in June 

Down in old Kentucky. 

— Alfred Monson. 

Of no grass has more been said than of this. It is 
almost everywhere found in eastern America from far 
north in Canada to the Gulf States. In many places it 
is called "June grass" ; in Maryland ''green grass." Beal 
says it is found in Australia, Asia and Europe. It varies 
somewhat according to its locality. Its name ''blue- 
grass" seems to me somewhat fanciful for assuredly its 
sister-grass, Canada bluegrass, is more blue. I think Ken- 
tucky bluegrass came originally from Europe. The evi- 
dence to me is found in the fact that it was not one of 



KENTUCKY BLUEGRASS 



77 




Kentucky Bluegrass (Poa pratensis). 



78 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

the prairie grasses of Illinois, nor seen on the rich open 
plains of Ohio, until white men came. When introduced 
into prairie regions it quite often crowds out the native 
grasses and afterwards, so farmers complain, yields less 
forage during dry seasons than did the grasses dis- 
placed. 

Give bluegrass credit for having fought its own way 
alone and unhelped. Without any aid of man it came 
to the new^ clearing; it grew about the cabin dooryard; 
it carpeted the newly-cleared pasture; it enriched and 
beautified the roadside; it held the clayey hillside and 
animals cropped it and waxed fat. Not corn, not wheat, 
not tobacco, but bluegrass became the chief article of 
export from the Central West, going out disguised as 
beef, mutton or pork, a large part of each being of its 
making. Of the millions of bluegrass pastures in Amer- 
ica only a few have ever had seed of this grass sown 
upon them. 

Bluegrass varies much in height. I have seen it 4' 
high where something held it up and again blooming 
when less than a foot high on poor soil or in cold climate. 
Its fine, feathery top does not last long but dries up and 
is not then relished by animals. There is a great wealth 
of blades, however, and these do not cease to push up 
all summer and long after most things are frozen in the 
fall. The decay of these blades and the creeping roots 
make the sod w^hich is often tough enough to be rolled 
into a roll like a green carpet. 

Bluegrass spreads rapidly by creeping rootstocks and 
thus thickens up a thin stand. Indeed it crowds out most 
other grasses, give it time. Its ability to displace other 



THE BLUEGRASS REGIONS 79 

grasses depends much on the soil in which it is found. 
In rich hmestone soils it revels, and there few things 
are able to keep foothold with it. Brome grass seems 
crowded out by it, and even that dreaded quack grass. 
Orchard grass seems to hold its own with bluegrass and 
even to spread among it. Meadow fescue grows well 
with it. When the soil is right, Canada bluegrass, red- 
top and timothy give way before it. All the wild prairie 
grasses yield to Kentucky bluegrass sooner or later if 
found growing where there is enough soil moisture. 

Clovers of many sorts consort well with bluegrass. 
Naturally the little creeping white clover is found with 
it. Red clover and mammoth clover grow well with 
't. Alsike clover is found with it on certain soils. Al- 
falfa does not much like bluegrass but bluegrass likes 
the afalfa well and crowds in wherever it is sown. With 
clovers growing in it, bluegrass is at its best, makes its 
best yield and makes its fattest lambs, pigs and cattle. 

THE BLUEGRASS REGIONS OF AMERICA. 

There is a distinct relationship between the carbonate 
of lime content of a soil and its ability to grow good 
bluegrass. Carbonate of lime is one of the foundations 
of soil fertility — perhaps the one thing most essential 
and most lacking in many types of soil. Where car- 
bonate of lime abounds in the soil there is found the 
most bountiful fertility. There is found a soft carpet 
of bluegrass over every bit of land not tilled or forested, 
often, indeed, carpeting the land beneath the oaks. Car- 
bonate of lime is also the mother of the clovers and they 
feed the bluegrass. The reader interested in what car- 



80 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

bonate of lime can do for the soil should read "Alfalfa 
Farming in America," where a rather close study of this 
important subject has been made. 

Wherever limestone is found bluegrass is seen. It 
grows also all over the northern states, but it does not 
assume great importance elsewhere than on limestone. 
It can be made to grow on many soils by the simple 
expedient of heavy application of carbonate of lime. On 
sands in Maryland I have seen good bluegrass along the 
roadsides where oyster shells had been ground up by 
wagon wheels. In Vermont is a notable bluegrass re- 
gion : some spots of it are found in New York (it grows 
sparingly over nearly all the state) ; there are fine lime- 
stone valleys where it thrives in Pennsylvania and Mary- 
land. One reaches Virginia before one finds bluegrass 
enthroned as queen of all field crops. In the limestone 
regions, mostly in a belt running through the state from 
the Potomac River to the line of Tennessee, one sees 
splendid pastures fed by fine cattle, horses and sheep. 
The chief interest in the good parts of these bluegrass 
counties is in grazing, and the livestock fed there is ex- 
ceedingly good. There is practically no other grass than 
bluegrass on these hills. One finds splendid examples 
in Loudoun, Clarke, Shenandoah, Augusta, and on down 
through Tazewell, Russell and Smyth counties. I have 
not named all the counties having fine bluegrass but 
enough to show the line or ''pay streak" of carbonate of 
lime that makes the grass. In Russell county Hon. 
Henry Stuart has grown from a pasture as much as 500 
pounds of beef per acre and had considerable fall pas- 
ture left for calves when the export steers were g-one. 



VIRGINIA GRASS LANDS 



81 




Virginia Mountain Pastures. 



82 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

Once in Burke's Garden in Tazewell county an old 
man told me of the first coming of bluegrass to that 
mountain vale. His father was a slave-owner who grew 
corn, and the new grass coming unsown troubled him 
greatly. He had the slaves dig it up and lay it on the 
stumps to die, dolefully predicting that "this grass will 
some day run us out of the country." Instead, the grass 
now carpets nearly all of the valley and sends out many 
fine fat cattle and lambs each year. 

When the Virginians went to Kentucky they unwit- 
tingly took the grass with them in their old high wagon 
boxes as forage for their horses or as bedding for them- 
selves. Thus it spread along the wayside and in a few 
years was at home in the new, rich soils of central Ken- 
tucky. It found there a most congenial home. That 
soil is rich in phosphorus and rich in lime. Bluegrass 
grew there so vigorously that it seemed like a new plant 
and took the name of the state in which it grew best. 
It is assuredly true that bluegrass partakes considerably 
of the nature of the soil upon which it grows. This is 
true of other plants as well, but is perhaps more espe- 
cially true of this grass. At least it is notable that 
horses grazed on bluegrass in Kentucky on the soils so 
rich in lime and phosphorus have a splendid bone and 
a wonderful stamina and endurance. They have also 
an almost inextinguishable goodness that is hard to de- 
fine or explain. It is as true of the men and women 
of the region, so the underlying rocks and soil do assur- 
edly influence what springs out of them. Ohio may on 
its more favored acres grow more bluegrass than Ken- 
tucky, but it seems to make softer horseflesh and poorer 



CATTLE ON BLUEGRASS 



83 



Q 




84 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

bone. Illinois grows big, juicy bluegrass but it does not 
make cattle fat as does the grass of the Virginia moun- 
tains. 

Ohio was settled soon after Kentucky, and bluegrass 
came with settlement. The natural bluegrass area of 
Ohio lies mostly west of the Scioto River, though there 
are rich hills and valleys east of the river that pro- 
duce the grass well. The advantages of bluegrass are 
that it is very hardy, is green early in spring ana late 
in fall (it is not quite so hardy as brome grass, though) ; 
it is very nutritious and palatable; it makes much milk, 
muscle and fat; it is fairly productive. It yields nearly 
as much dry matter as the larger grasses, if we except 
the meadow grasses. The yield is variable, depending 
on moisture of the soil and fertility. Neglected and 
closely grazed, bluegrass pastures are often yielding com- 
paratively little. On Woodland Farm we have tested 
plots with and without manures; the land unfed yielded 
at first cutting 6,400 pounds of green forage per acre; 
the manured land, 20,000 pounds. 

This was the spring growth only; there would be 
about two-thirds as much more to come from the land 
during later croppings. The grass was cut about July i. 

Bluegrass for I.azvns. — Wherever the soil is good and 
moisture can be had, north of Tennessee bluegrass is 
the best lawn grass. It is doubtful whether any grass 
added to it improves it. It is better when mixed with 
white clover. If the soil is poor sheep fescue and other 
inferior grasses may help it out. Canada bluegrass will 
grow on poorer soil than Kentucky blue. In Tennessee 



SEEDING BLUEGRASS 85 

if the lawn can have partial shade, if it has a rich soil 
supplied with enough lime, bluegrass will thrive. South 
of this state the summer suns seem too hot and Bermuda 
grass is better. 

Disadvantages of Bluegrass. — It spreads rapidly and 
crowds out timothy, clovers and alfalfa. It is a little 
hard in wet seasons to eradicate from plowed fields, 
though this is not serious. It grows in the moist weather 
of spring and crowds out better drouth-resistant grasses. 
This is especially true in the western prairie states and 
in the Willamette Valley of Oregon, where it is com- 
plained that ^'bluegrass crowds out all other grasses and 
then dies itself of drouth." 

Seeding Bluegrass. — Bluegrass seed is small ; there are 
about some 2,200,000 seeds in a pound, yet one cannot 
bank on more than a very small percentage of them germi- 
nating owing to the difficulty in sowing them to a proper 
depth, having sufficient moisture and other favorable con- 
ditions. Hunt says that when 40 pounds are sown on 
one acre it puts 2,000 seeds to the square foot. I think 
that bluegrass will lie dormant in the soil for some time, 
as it often appears almost spontaneously in a meadow of 
timothy or alfalfa. One can not establish bluegrass ex- 
cept very early in spring or during cool, moist weather 
of fall. The seed does not germinate unless during some 
part of the day the temperature drops to 40°. It is 
cheaper and easier to establish bluegrass by sowing it 
with other grasses. If the grass is not already found 
growing wild in that neighborhood it is probably of no 
use to sow it at all until something has been done to 



86 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

change the soil type. However, if the chmate is all 
right the soil may be made right. Heavy liming, prefer- 
ably w^ith ground and unburned limestone (carbonate of 
lime), then manuring, are all that bluegrass requires to 
make it succeeed. In Virginia it is a custom to turn 
under a heavy crop of cowpeas before seeding to blue- 
grass. The more nitrogen in the soil the better for this 
crop; it revels too in humus. It is not a poor-soil grass. 

One should prepare a fine, firm seedbed for bluegrass. 
He can hardly harrow and firm his land too well. He 
may sow in September with fall wheat or barley. This 
mixture w^ill give good results (sooner or later the blue- 
grass will have almost complete possession) : Timothy, 
15 pounds; Kentucky bluegrass, 10; meadow fescue, 5; 
red clover, 7, or alsike clover, 6 pounds or, better, mix 
them together and sow 8 pounds, little white clover, 2 
pounds. Clovers are not well sown in the fall ; this mix- 
ture can be sown early in April or in late March if the 
ground can be gotten ready. Or the grasses may be sown 
in September with wheat, a very thin seeding, or barley 
or even rye, so it is sown very thin ; rye makes too many 
leaves to be a first-rate nurse-crop for small grasses, and 
the clovers added in the spring. I really prefer the 
spring-sowing, as then the conditions can all be con- 
trolled nicely. Late spring seeding is useless. Timothy 
is the first grass to appear but sooner or later the blue- 
grass will crowd that out. 

Mixture zvith Brome Grass. — Really I should prefer 
the brome grass mixture to that with timothy. Brome 
grass is as easily set as timothy, so one gets good seed. 



PREPARING TO SEED BLUEGRASS 87 

and once it is set it makes far better pasture than tim- 
othy, more and better pasture. Indeed, it is possible that 
it may make better pasture than the bluegrass itself ; that 
is a point yet to be determined. In time on bluegrass 
soil the brome -will disappear almost completely, this 
because the animals eat it soonest and because the blue- 
grass though a smaller grass has a, way of crowding in 
very closely, so that even the vigorous brome grass is 
outdone. In any event, in sowing a mixture with brome 
grass one is assured of good pasturage almost from 
the outset. The one objection to the mixture is that 
sometimes one buys seed of quack grass with brome grass, 
but this is no evil if one is to devote the field to permanent 
pasture. In truth, quack grass (Agropyrum repens) is 
one of the very best grasses for pasture. Nor is it very 
hard to conquer except in northern and ultra-moist lo- 
calities. I do not find it a particularly troublesome weed 
in central Ohio, while in Michigan, Wisconsin and New 
York farmers dread it exceedingly. 

Coming now to seeding bluegrass with brome grass, I 
suggest early spring as the best time. The land is well 
to be plowed during winter or else disked up with no 
plowing at all. Manure will help; use it as liberally 
as you can. I should sow then 20 pounds of bluegrass, 
10 pounds of brome grass and a mixture of clovers ac- 
cording to the soil. Sow with it also 5 pounds of tim- 
othy if you like ; it will help thicken the sod at first. Do 
not mix orchard grass with this seed as it does not give 
brome grass a fair show ; animals relish the brome grass 
too well to eat orchard grass while it is to be had. 



88 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

Methods of Sowing the Seed. — Having the fine, firm 
seedbed I suggest drilling into it one bushel to the acre 
of beardless spring barley, afterward sowing the grass 
mixture by hand. To cover the seed sufficiently a brush 
harrow is good. One can readily make this by fastening 
small, stiff, wiry branches to a brace, or even drag brush 
over the field — anything that will not dig deep or cover 
seed deep. Mind it is done early in spring. Observe 
afterward how much finer a stand you have where you 
have applied the most manure. If no manure is avail- 
able and one wishes to stimulate the young grasses one 
may apply before sowing the seed commercial fertilizers. 
Bonemeal will do wonders — say 400 pounds to the acre, 
or the same amount and 100 pounds of nitrate of soda. 
In truth, the use of bonemeal or phosphatic fertilizers of 
some sort has been well proved to be a first-rate agricul- 
tural practice when establishing grasses. 

Sowing Bluegrass with Alfalfa. — If I wished to estab- 
lish the very best possible bluegrass I would forget the 
bluegrass and prepare the land exactly right for alfalfa. 
Then when the alfalfa has been sown and established I 
would know that the bluegrass would come in tremendous 
vigor, even if no seed were sown at all. Naturally it 
would come in better when seed was sown, say 1 5 pounds 
of alfalfa, and at the same time in early April 20 
pounds more or less of bluegrass. In England the best 
farmers have learned that there is nothing else so good 
a preparation for grass as alfalfa. 

Improving Bluegrass by Sozuing Alfalfa. — Similarly, 
it is a great scheme to sow alfalfa on an old bluegrass 



SOWING FERTILIZER WITH SEED 89 

sod. One first drains the wet places in the pasture, plows 
the land in early spring, disks and harrows it and sows 
to alfalfa with a good dressing of fertilizer. It takes well 
on such a seedbed. In two years there is a splendid mix- 
ture of alfalfa and bluegrass and in four years the heaviest 
of bluegrass and not much alfalfa left. 

Example of Successful Seeding. — In 1900 we bought 
a clay hill field above our own land. It had not been in 
grass for half a century. It was beginning to wash and 
gully badly and the clay was covering our better kept 
soil below. We had little expectation of profit from this 
field for many years, believing that regeneration would 
be slow. There was no available manure for it. We 
therefore bought commercial fertilizers, mixing them our- 
selves. Acid phosphate and tankage were the ingredients, 
the tankage being slaughter-house waste, dried and 
ground, the acid phosphate the bones of pre-historic ani- 
mal life, treated with sulphuric acid to make it dissolve 
in the soil and available to plants. We disked the field 
very early in spring and as deep as we could, then drilled 
in about 300 pounds per acre of this fertilizer. We sowed 
two bushels of barley per acre and right behind the drill 
a mixture of grass seeds ; there were brome grass, orchard 
grass, timothy, Kentucky bluegrass and white clover. 
After sowing the seed we rolled it with a 2,200-pound 
roller, bringing it down to a firm condition, so that 
the moisture would come clear to the surface. It proved 
to be a dry summer. When the barley grew up about 
18" we turned in sheep which ate it down; then we took 
them off. Their tiny feet yet further firmed the soil. 



90 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

Later in the season they were turned in again for a 
few w^eeks — not long enough to eat the young grass close. 
In the fall cockleburs came thick with other weeds. We 
put the moweV over the held. Stock was kept off in the 
winter and at wet times, as there was only the young 
grass and no sod as yet. In the spring of 1902 we put 
the manure spreader over the entire field. The grass 
came on well and thickened up wonderfully. That old 
scarred hillside became a mass of thick grass and white 
clover. It pastured a great deal of stock — sheep, cattle 
and colts. I have no doubt that it yielded us at least $5 
per acre. And each year since it has done better, for the 
grass is now firmly rooted. The bluegrass is gradually 
rooting cut most of the other grasses. White clover has 
been luxuriant over all the land. That is because 
of the acid phosphate which we applied. Clover has 
also stored the soil with nitrogen, which the grasses take 
up and use. Men seldom sow white clover because they 
say it will come in of itself. That is true, but it does 
not pay to wait ; better sow the seed and get immediately 
what would take years to accomplish in nature's leisurely 
process of seed-growing and distribution. It does not 
pay to allow nature to do one's farming. 

I write now in July, 19 10. The foregoing account 
of the old field was written seven years ago. That field 
has continued to give us great profit and has taught us 
some lessons. For one thing, we now know better than 
to mix brome grass with orchard grass. There is now 
little indeed of the brome grass left; it is mainly a field 
of orchard grass and bluegrass. It is not well to mix 



MAXIMUM BLUEGRASS RETURNS 91 

orchard grass and bluegrass. Each should be in separate 
fields. 

Mixing Orchard Gj'gss zmth Bluegrass. — The result 
has been that animals like the bluegrass so much better 
than they do the orchard grass that the bluegrass is kept 
grazed too close and the orchard grass let grow too rank 
and tall. Nevertheless, the bluegrass is steadily encroach- 
ing on its competitor. Orchard grass is a tremendously 
good grass, but sow it in a field by itself wdiere it will 
be fenced so that animals must eat it when they are 
turned to it. 

Securing a Maximum of Bluegrass. — Not many men 
understand how to manage a bluegrass pasture ; in truth, 
they seldom give it any thought at all. It is assumed that 
pastures should care for themselves and be always cheer- 
ful carriers of all the animals that can be piled on them. 
The following principles of good management the author 
has observed : Feed animals on the sod in winter when 
it is not wet enough to tramp into mire. Use the manure 
spreader to cover thinly the poorer spots in the field. 
Keep animals religiously off in early spring ; let the grass 
not only start but grow till there is a good, rich, sweet 
bite. In latitude 40° May 10 is early enough to turn on 
bluegrass pasture. This one feature is of great im- 
portance — more than is often realized. Grasses are half- 
killed by being gnawed to the very earth in spring when 
they are seeking to re-establish themselves after a long, 
cruel winter. The carrying capacity of a pasture may 
be nearly doubled by observing this rule, though it re- 
quires good management to accomplish it. 



92 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

Export Cattle on Blucgrass. — ''Have enough grass so 
that the cattle can never eat more than two-thirds of it; 
have enough grass for 20 and put on it 1 5 ; let the grass 
cover the pasture so that it shades it and prevents the 
land drying out in summer. If you find you have too 
much grass when the cattle are gone fat in the fall you 
will be able to feed it off during November and December 
with younger cattle. Enough grass for three and two 
eating it will make export cattle." This is the advice of 
one of America's most successful cattlemen who owns 
thousands of acres of mountain pastures in Virginia. In 
deed, the one item of leaving the grass long so that it 
will mulch the soil and keep it moist is worth a great 
deal, though grass too long is not relished by animals 
as is shorter, sweeter, fresher blades. From my own 
observation, I urge the use of the manure spreader on 
bluegrass pastures, the use of phosphorus, of clover seeds 
when needed, of keeping animals off till pastures can 
start in spring. 

Hozv Bluegrass Came to Ohio. — The settler came with 
much toil and trouble into the woods of Ohio. He chose 
a dry little hill in the w^oods for his homesite. Below the 
house there bubbled up a spring. After the cabin walls 
of log were reared and roofed the spring was dug out 
and walled with stone. Then clearing was begun. The 
first crop on the fresh-cleared and burned land was wheat 
or corn. About the sole crops undertaken were wheat, 
corn, flax, and buckwheat. Hay was cut from the 
marshes from native wild grasses. CovvS were turned 
outside the clearings to browse in the wood^. Each little 



EXPORT STEERS ON BLUEGRASS 



93 




94 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

herd had its bell-cow which signalled constantly the 
whereabouts of the herd to the boy whose mission it was 
to bring them home to be milked. Sometimes the boy 
got lost in the woods while hunting cows. One nearly 
grown young man who lacked woodcraft was lost several 
times and finally his father gave him a compass with in- 
structions that if he found the cows they would surely 
lead him home ; if he did not find them the compass would 
tell him the direction. Yet he was again lost. Search- 
ing parties found the trail of the boy and cows, going 
the wrong direction, then of the boy alone, he having 
abandoned the cows. When they overtook him he was 
miles in the wilderness. He explained that ''the dumb 
cows would not go in the right direction without being 
driven," then he got tired of driving them and they were 
contrary and he left them. "Later the compass itself 
got contrary and pointed east when it should point north." 
Those cows did not find much grass. There was some 
woods grass, for the trees had little undergrowth beneath 
them. There were old clearings made by fire and Indians 
along the streams and here was wild grass. It seems 
there was no bluegrass. This first sprung up about the 
camp-fires of emigrants from Kentucky and Virginia. It 
spread slowly at first, then rapidly and occupied the 
roadsides, the settlers' dooryards, the fence corners, grow- 
ing in the woods wherever the sun shone. It grew espe- 
cially strong in southwestern Ohio, in the land west of 
the Scioto and as far north as Hardin county. It even- 
tually overspread nearly the whole state. Pickaway, Ross, 
Fayette, Madison, Butler, Warren, Montgomery, Miami, 



GRAZING IN FOREIGN LANDS 



95 




96 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

Greene, Clark, Champaign and a few other counties grew 
it especially strong and vigorous. Timothy grass was 
introduced and sown for meadow. Blue grass established 
itself in these meadows and crowded out the timothy. 
The national road was builded and communication with 
the East established more easily than before and cattle 
began to be a prime source of wealth. In the early '30s 
*men began learning that there was as much profit in 
fencing pastures and letting cattle graze the unsown blue- 
grass as in anything. Later it became the most profitable 
industry of the southwestern part of the state. Hogs 
were always grown in numbers and this industry was 
most important, but cattle could travel afoot to Baltimore 
or Philadelphia. 

In Pickaway, Madison, Clark, Greene and Champaign 
counties there grew immense estates, from 600 to 4,000 
acres in extent. The timber was bur or white oak, black 
walnut, elm, wild cherry and ash. It did not stand very 
thick. There grew up after settlement thickets of hazel- 
nut. These the cattlemen grubbed out and the bluegrass 
took possession of the ground beneath the trees. Im- 
mense pastures set with trees like parks of England were 
grazed by cattle that fattened mostly on the grass. Charles 
Phellis had one pasture of this nature of 500 acres as 
late as 20 years ago. White clover came with the blue- 
grass. Neither was ever sown, so far as I can learn. 
The cattle were sold at four or five years, sometimes as 
young as three years. They w^ere mostly grown from 
cows kept by the settlers on the hills, New England Yan- 
kees. Many of these hill farmers were content with small 



BLUEGRASS ON LIMESTONE 97 

farms of lOO to 200 acres, milking cows and making 
cheese, raising calves and pigs, selling the calves in the 
fall to the big farmers of the "plains country." The 
hill farmer pitied the plains farmer, who was stuck down 
in mud and miasma, suffering plagues of chills and fever, 
mosquitoes, green-headed flies and rattle-snakes. 

The long-headed, ambitious young men went to the 
plains for all that. Some of them walked there. They 
were men of mighty muscle and brain. They could do 
anything that men needed to do in that land from break- 
ing oxen to hewing out timbers to roof a home. These 
m.en worked hard and lived long. Their sons, born in 
prosperous times, worked very little. Their grandsons 
have taken two ways of life — part of them have deserted 
the soil altogether, others have taken hold with about 
as much energy as their grandfathers had and are re- 
conquering the soil and learning to make two blades 
of grass grow where but one grew in the palmiest days 
of their grandsires.- It is a land resting now on a foun- 
dation of drain tiles. Not a farm but has miles of them. 
Woodland Farm has as much as 16 miles of them just 
at the edge of the plains country. It is a land threaded 
now with stone roads. It is a land of homes, of old 
trees, of memories that awaken pride, a land of beauty 
and chivalry. They say the fairest women out of Ken- 
tucky are in that land. It is a land of limestone and 
sturdy-legged boys, and of girls with the blush of the 
rose in their cheeks and the glint of the sun in their hair. 

The methods of growing and fattening cattle in those 
early days were delightfully simple. Calves did not fare 



98 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

very sumptuously the first winter. They got some nub- 
bins of corn from the best feeders' hands. The hay was 
wild grass later intermixed with bluegrass and corn sto- 
ver. Corn was all cut up into shocks of 144 or 256 hills. 
It was fed on the ground in the fields in the shelter of 
the timber. The second summer of the steer's life he 
was on bluegrass. He got round and sleek there. He 
had salt and good water and no more. The second win- 
ter of the steer's life was like the first except he might 
not get any nubbins of corn at all or he might get a por- 
tion of shock corn. He generally got rather thin before 
spring on corn stover, which was weatherbeaten in Feb- 
ruary and March. But he came to grass with a good 
appetite. He was now two years old and something be- 
gan to be expected of him. He might grow fat on grass 
alone or he might be fed green corn as soon as it ripened, 
and this be continued until some time in December, or 
he might be fed shock corn all winter and go to market 
when he was three years old. Some that did not look 
ready to feed would be roughed through the third winter. 
After the Short-horn blood came in, the quality of the 
cattle and their early-maturing qualities were greatly im- 
proved. In the '50s there were very good cattle leaving 
Ohio. In the '60s my memory begins and some mag- 
nificent cattle were fed in my country. They were larger, 
rougher, fatter than cattle now, as I remember it. They 
were far heavier. In the '70s cattle were marketed at 
an earlier age than had been customary and seldom were 
they more than three years old when shipped. The rail- 
way began to supersede the drive in the '50s. 



CONCLUSIONS ABOUT BLUEGRASS 99 

What of the number of cattle fed then and now? It 
is mere guess-work but I think there are double the num- 
ber fed now. There are more men at it now. There is 
little forest left. Cattle are no longer grown on the farms 
to any great extent; they come to be filled up, fattened 
and to go on. The land produces double what it ever 
did despite the roseate visions of eyes turned back- 
ward. We are better farmers and better feeders, too. 
We are not the mighty men of muscle our sires were, nor 
are we so saving and economical as they. We are making 
more money but we are not building fortunes as they did, 
nor can we so readily as they did. They were in a new, 
glorious land, blossoming with hopes. 

SUMMARY OF KENTUCKY BLUEGRASS. 

Bluegrass is the most universal of grasses, the best for 
lawns on suitable soils not too far south, the best for 
roadsides and certainly one of the best for pastures. 
Bluegrass loves a rich soil with enough carbonate of 
lime in it and sufficient phosphorus and nitrogen. It is 
essentially a grass of limestone soils. It affords much 
herbage of unusually high nutrition. Seemingly its one 
rival as a pasture grass on good soils is brome grass 
(Bromiis inermis). Bluegrass pays well for being fed 
with manure and fertilizers. It grows well with clovers, 
and they strengthen it. Bluegrass creeps into alfalfa 
meadows and the result is strong, unusually luxuriant 
bluegrass, though the alfalfa will be weakened. It is 
best sown with a mixture of coarser grasses, such as 
timothy, meadow fescue and brome grass, which it later 



100 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

supplants. It does not grow w^ell with orchard grass 
since animals eat the bkiegrass too greedily, leaving the 
orchard grass untouched. To get the most possible out 
of it do not turn animals on the pasture before the grass 
is strong and affording a full bite, and do not during 
hot weather graze it down to the bare earth. Blue- 
grass finds summer heats and drouth its worst enemies. 
It enriches soils on which it grows by accumulating a sod 
rich in nitrogen. 

Kentucky bluegrass varies in worth according to the 
soil on which it grows. One can hardly get the maximum 
yield from his soil sown to bluegrass because it is rather 
a shallow feeder and dries out the soil rapidly. Never- 
theless, as it needs no cultivation, enriches land and prop- 
erly managed affords much excellent grazing that makes 
the highest quality of animal life, one should reflect well 
before he plows up a bluegrass pasture, and should con- 
sider whether he is not seriously at fault in not estab- 
lishing a new one. It pays as w^ell to manure a blue- 
grass sod as any other land on the farm. There is 
no leaching away of fertility put on bluegrass. 

Canada Bluegrass (Poa compressa). — It sometimes 
seems to me that this grass should really bear the name 
"bluegrass," as it is of a dark, bluish color, much more of 
a blue than the common Kentucky bluegrass. It has 
many common names, wire grass, Virginia bluegrass and 
flat-stemmed bluegrass. It is a shorter, more slender 
grass than Kentucky bluegrass and more nearly ever- 
green. Its stems do not dry up as do those of blue- 
grass, but remain green for a considerable time. It is 



CANADA BLUEGRASS 



101 




Canada Bluegrass (Poa Compressa), 



102 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

rather hard and somewhat tough, but it is sweet and 
very nutritious. Animals Hke it well and cattle fatten 
on it. Horses especially thrive on Canada bluegrass and 
when it is sometimes made into hay, horsemen are glad 
to have a chance to buy it. 

It is right curious how widely distributed is Canada 
bluegrass. I have seen it in northern Idaho. It is said 
that as early as 1823 it was found growing wild along 
the upper Saskatchewan in Canada. It is everywhere 
in the eastern states of America and as far south as Ten- 
nessee and the mountains of North Carolina. It is not 
a southern grass, but will endure about the same amount 
of heat and drouth as its cousin, Kentucky bluegrass. 

Canada bluegrass is less particular about its soil than 
is Kentucky bluegrass. It likes clays and hard soils; 
it comes where the land is rather infertile and makes 
the best of it. Where there is not quite enough lime, not 
quite enough fertility for bluegrass, we find this hard- 
ier type. Sow the two together and if the soil is in- 
fertile and lime lacking, presently the Canada bluegrass 
will have possession and the Kentucky cousin will have 
retreated. Enrich that soil and it may be that the Canada 
cousin must retreat while the more pampered cousin 
comes to the front. It is a fair indication of land to 
note which of these grasses it supports in nature. I 
should say that land supporting spontaneously Kentucky 
bluegrass was worth about 50 per cent more than that 
growing Canada bluegrass ; there may be even a greater 
difference than that. It is a good grass, though, not to 
be despised — grass that holds its color and freshness even 



CANADA BLUEGRASS 103 

till snow buries it — a tremendously hardy grass, difficult 
to kill in cultivated fields and not tolerating companion- 
ship of clovers as well as does its namesake from Ken- 
tucky. 

There are many soils on which it should be sown, 
either alone or in mixture with other grasses. Lands 
lacking in lime, in fertility, may take it quite well when 
they would not take Kentucky bluegrass at all. The best 
grasses to mix with it for somewhat inferior soils are 
redtop and orchard grass. Sheep fescue added to this 
will also serve well. Cattle are fattened on this grass. 
Sometimes where both grasses are found on the same farm 
cattle are first fed on Kentucky bluegrass and later in the 
season are turned on Canada bluegrass to finish them. 
It is unquestionably a grass of high nutritive powers. 

Quantity of Seed to Sozv. — Canada bluegrass seed is 
often sold as a substitute for true Kentucky bluegrass, 
which leads to some disappointment. It is an easy grass 
to establish; 15 pounds of seed sown with grain in the 
fall, or with timothy, will give a stand. What has been 
said of sowing Kentucky bluegrass will apply as well 
to this grass. 

Canada Bluegrass as a Lawn Grass. — Where there is 
not quite enough fertility nor moisture for Kentucky 
bluegrass it may easily be that Canada bluegrass will 
make a very good lawn. For this purpose it should not 
be mixed with Kentucky bluegrass, as the two do not 
blend well. Sheep fescue sown with it will do very well. 
Seed of Canada bluegrass is usually threshed with a 
common thresher. The crop is mown with a mower after 



104 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

the stems begin to assume a golden color. It is cured in 
cocks and in the mow or stack. Much seed is also ob- 
tained from wheatfields in Ontario, where the grass is 
cut and bound up with wheat and both are threshed to- 
gether and saved. 

If I had a field of cheap land growing Canada blue- 
grass I would consider it well set in a profitable pasture 
grass. If it was growing on high-priced land I should 
begin to work on that field with underdrainage, carbonate 
of lime and fertilizers till it was replaced by more pro- 
ductive grasses. If one is in doubt as to whether he has 
Kentucky or Canada bluegrass let him look at the stems. 
Canada bluegrass has flat stems, nearly solid, rather hard 
and bluish green in color; Kentucky bluegrass has taller 
stems, round and less strong, green and turning yellow 
soon after the seed forms. 

I once made a grass experiment on very thin mountain 
land in Tennessee, quite devoid of lime. The grasses 
that best succeeded there were, first redtop, second Can- 
ada bluegrass and third orchard grass. 

Redtop (Agrostis alba). — For a fuller account of red- 
top see page 42 under meadow grasses. Redtop is 
really a better pasture grass than a meadow grass. It 
has much the same habit of growth as the bluegrasses, 
thickening remarkably by underground stems and mak- 
ing a dense sod. It yields a little more herbage than 
Kentucky bluegrass. With Garman in Kentucky the 
yield was 3.04 tons of dry hay per acre, which was 
exactly the same yield as brome grass and a little under 
meadow fescue. Timothy gave 3.68 tons cut nearly two 



EXPERIMENTING WITH GRASSES 105 

weeks later and orchard grass cut 8 days earlier yielded 
3.6 tons. Redtop is not so much liked by animals as 
is bluegrass, nor will they fatten so well on it. It is 
adapted to wetter soils than most other useful grasses, and 
is not such a stickler for lime as are the better grasses. 
It endures heat better, too, and will grow farther south 
than will bluegrasses. I have seen very good redtop on 
black buckshot soil in north Louisiana, where I am sure 
bluegrass would promptly perish in summer time. Never- 
theless, it is not at all at home in hot countries ; Ber- 
muda grass is a far better pasture grass there. I am 
inclined to advise this : Do not try to force nature. 
Follow her lead. If you have a redtop soil and climate 
use redtop. If you wish to grow bluegrass where natural- 
ly only redtop grows, try drainage, limestone and ferti- 
lizer first. 

Farms as Grass Experiment Gardens. — It is interesting 
to the student of plant life to observe how very many 
forms of grass may be found on almost any farm. On 
Woodland Farm, for example, we can find ever}^ grass 
mentioned in this book excepting the distinctively south- 
ern grasses, and even some of these are represented. 
Johnson grass has survived several winters and is yet in 
evidence, accidentally established. One should familiar- 
ize himself with the different species ; he can do it readily 
enough, and if he finds a new grass that he cannot quite 
place he will get its identification if he will send a flower- 
ing specimen, top, stem and a bit of the root, to his ex- 
periment station. Today (July 23, 1910) I can find in 
bloom or just out of bloom on Woodland Farm the blue- 



106 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

grasses, two or three fescues, orchard grass, timothy, 
redtop, tall oatgrass, nimblewill, quack grass (and a fine 
grass it is, too, one of the best, if only not so devilish) 
and brome grass — these of the important cultivated 
grasses, and many minor grasses beside the annuals. It 
seems to me one can tell just by the behavior of these 
grasses what is best fitted to his soil and has a chance for 
the most profit. With us redtop is seen chiefly in the 
moister places ; it grows exceedingly well ; we have never 
sown it nor, in truth, have ever knowingly sown several 
other things that are with us, notably quack grass (Agro- 
pynim repens). If one would accustom himself to ob- 
serving even stray clumps of grass here and there on his 
own land he would hardly need ask any man's advice 
as to what was best for him to grow. 

Redtop in Mixtures. — For all soils inclined to poverty 
or wetness, I should include redtop in a pasture mixture, 
putting with it Canada bluegrass, sheep fescue, orchard 
grass, alsike clover and little w4iite clover. There is a 
peculiar relationship between alsike clover and redtop. 
It has been observed by many farmers that the soil that 
suits the one suits the other admirably. 

Seeding to Redtop. — There are from 4 to 6 million 
seeds in a pound of redtop seed. It is smaller than tim- 
othy and is usually sown in much the same manner only 
it must not be covered as deeply as timothy hay. It is 
easily established and lasts longer than timothy. It is 
the best grass for sour land that one has not had time 
to correct with carbonate of lime. It is a sure forecaster 
of soils ; when one sees a region given over to redtop one 



YIELD OF ORCHARD GRASS 107 

knows that there is much soil acidity there and a back- 
ward agriculture generally. 

Orchard Grass (Dactylis giomerata) . — For description 
of the grass see page 46. Hardly any other grass has 
been more written of than orchard grass, and yet it is 
seldom used. It is less easily sown than timothy among 
meadow grasses. Animals do not eat it with the relish 
that they do bluegrass in the pasture, yet it has its place 
and has great value. Garman credits it with a yield of 
dry forage of ;i^.6 tons to the acre on June 12. In con- 
trast, brome grass, a much more palatable and nutritious 
grass, yielded five days later 3.04 tons; redtop, 3.04 on 
June 20 and bluegrass, June 11 1.68 tons. It is evident 
from this comparison that orchard grass yielded more 
than double what bluegrass did, and experience proves 
orchard grass to make very good horses and cattle when 
grazed. It yielded practically the same as the very much 
more palatable grass bromus inermis, however, which 
would indicate that where one could choose between the 
two one should take the latter. Orchard grass, however, 
will grow on land too poor in lime and too deficient in 
fertility for bluegrass or even brome grass. It is easily 
established. The seed is apt to be good and pure and is 
not very dear. There is good profit in growing orchard 
grass seed. It roots deeper than most other cultivated 
grasses and stands drouth better. One can get from 150 
to 250 pounds of orchard grass seed from an acre and 
afterward can have good pasture. 

Quantity of Seed to Sozv. — It may be sown as timothy 
is sown, and if sown alone 30 to 40 pounds of seed are 



108 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

sown to the acre. I have had excellent results in sow- 
ing this grass in spring, very early and on well prepared 
land. While orchard grass always grows in stools it is 
doubtful whether one can make any gain by trying to 
fill the spaces between the stools, as the roots occupy 
the land. It should always be mixed with clovers and 
grows quite well with alfalfa. In sowing it with the 
latter one should not use more than 1 5 pounds of orchard 
grass seed, else it will too much crowd the alfalfa. Sown 
wath alfalfa, it reduces the tendency of bloat among pas- 
tured cattle and the first cutting will be of nicely inter- 
mixed hay. The right mixture to put with orchard grass 
is likely redtop, meadow fescue and Canada bluegrass, 
always with clovers added. One must not let orchard 
grass grow up too rank, else the animals dislike it. One 
can keep it fresh and tender by mowing the rank spots 
in the pasture and making the coarse herbage into hay. 
I have seen a curious thing here ; cattle and horses would 
come to the mown grass when in cock and eat it readily 
though they were running where they could get all the 
uncut grass they desired. 

Do I advise sowing orchard grass pastures? Doubt- 
less they may be made very profitable. They are espe- 
cially useful for horses, which relish the grass more than 
do cattle or sheep. Simply see to it that the pastures of 
this grass are fenced to themselves, so that once turned 
to it the animals can not choose but eat it ; they will then 
not neglect it. I think almost any stock-farmer would 
find one pasture of orchard grass properly cared for a 
profitable aid in maintaining herds, flocks and studs. 



WHERE BROME GRASS THRIVES 109 

Brome Grass (Broinus inermis). — For description of 
this grass read page 50. I will add here that this 
is one of the deepest-rooted of cultivated grasses. In 
pervious soil its roots will penetrate 4' to 6'. It is there- 
fore much more drouth-resistant than bluegrass or most 
cultivated grasses. Brome grass comes to us from the 
steppes of Russia, those lands so much like our Dakotas 
in soil and climate. It is therefore adapted to all our 
half-moist lands west of the Mississippi River, and will 
grow well out beyond where corn grows, but as one gets 
far west the yield decreases according to the moisture. 
I have seen it growing wonderfully in eastern Washing- 
ton where long dry summers are the rule. In central 
Ohio it has proved on Woodland Farm at least the best 
pasture grass we have ever tested. Animals relish it even 
better than bluegrass, and that is high praise. I have 
often seen pastures that were in part sown to brome grass 
and in part to other grasses eaten to the earth where 
the brome grass stood and left almost untouched in the 
other parts. It is therefore not perfectly adapted to be- 
ing sown as a pasture mixture. I have seen Kentucky 
bluegrass entirely supplant brome grass in 12 years, main- 
ly because animals always bit the brome grass first and 
closest. It will not do well mixed with orchard grass or 
redtop. With Kentucky bluegrass it goes fairly well, 
though I have observed that sheep and cattle usually eat 
the bluegrass last. 

Thousands of farmers should sow pastures of brome 
grass who have yet to test it, as where it is adapted to 
the soil and climate it will yield probably double what 



110 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

they are now receiving from their native grasses. I 
would not sow it for meadow in the timothy region. It 
does not appear to thrive far south of the Ohio River. 
Hunt remarks that at Ithaca, N. Y., animals relished 
brome grass pasture better than that of any other grass, 
a number of species being grown in one field. It seems to 
prefer a soil rich in lime. On the whole, it is a better 
pasture than a meadow^ plant. 

I have found brome grass very easily established, and 
if the soil is good it rapidly thickens if the stand is at 
first somewhat thin. Spring seeding on a good seedbed, 
preferably early in the season, seems best. If I were 
to mix any grass with brome grass for pasture it would 
be timothy (which soon disappears), meadow fescue and 
Kentucky bluegrass. 

Quantity of Seed to Sozu. — Twenty pounds of good 
seed to the acre will give a stand. In sowing brome 
grass on cultivated lands one should be cautious in the 
matter of the source of seed, since it is sometimes mixed 
more or less with quack grass. This will do no harm 
for pasture ; in truth, quack is one of the very best pasture 
grasses. I do not know w-hich will be victorious in 
the struggle for supremacy, the brome grass or the quack, 
though if the land is plowed the brome is soon killed, 
and quack is left in possession. Brome grass needs clo- 
vers or alfalfa in company to make it fully productive. 
I have found it one of the very best grasses to sow wnth 
alfalfa where the land is to be pastured, as its presence 
prevents animals suffering from bloat. It is curious 
that while nearly all the cultivated grasses spread them- 



SOILS FOR THE FESCUES 111 

selves more or less unaided by man's intent, brome grass 
is seen nowhere unless sown. Yet it is tremendously 
hardy and able to care for itself, once established. Per- 
haps the heavy seeds that do not readily carry with the 
wind are unable to travel as lighter seeds do. Brome 
grass pastures will be green and give a good bite in spring 
earlier than any other good grass of my acquaintance, 
and it w^ill endure longest in the fall. It makes very 
poor growth in infertile soils. Given rich land, it will 
make a splendid showing. It seems not adapted to south- 
ern conditions. 

Brome Grass Needs to Recuperate. — L. Ogilvy, a good 
observer of things pastoral, says that brome grass to do 
its best or even to do very well as pasture grass should 
have a chance occasionally to grow, after which it may be 
eaten down again. He says that in the West he has not 
seen brome grass do very well when it was subject to 
continuous close pasturing. 

The Fescue Grasses. — For a description of these see 
page 53. The fescue grasses are much used in Eng- 
land for permanent pastures. There are many species, 
only half a dozen of which are in common use, and these 
only nominally so in America. Meadow fescue, or Eng- 
ish bluegrass (Festuca elatior var. pratensis) is the most 
worthy of cultivation and introduction into pasture mix- 
tures. The richer the soil the more meadow fescue 
crow^ds into the pasture. It is evident, too, that animals 
relish it. Of all the others, red fescue and sheep fescue, 
it is difficult to say how much value they may have. 
Seedsmen list them but have so little call for the seed 



112 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

that it is often old and of poor vitality when sold. Sheep 
fescue has much value for poor pastures unable to hold 
bluegrass. Sheep fescue is really a very good grass on 
pretty good clay soil. In making a mixture for poor 
soils I should include sheep fescue and perhaps some 
of the other species, while for good soils I should in- 
clude meadow fescue. 

Bermuda Grass (Capriola dactylon). — Bermuda grass 
is a low, creeping grass, found in the South, usually no 
more than i' high, though on rich soils it may be as 
much as 2. It spreads rapidly by means of underground 
stems and above ground will send out stolons or long 
runners that strike root at each joint. In this manner 
it rapidly covers the ground. It is propagated by plant- 
ing chopped-up bits of sod, and from its rapid spread 
when conditions are right it soon has possession of the 
land. Bermuda grass is sometimes propagated by seed, 
but as the seed is very costly and of uncertain germina- 
tion, it is far more profitable to plant the roots. I have 
sown a great deal of seed under what seemed favorable 
conditions without getting more than 10 in a million 
to make plants. To plant the roots fortunately is easy. 
One need only plow shallow furrows through a Bermuda 
sod, with a spade cut the sod into bits as large as bis- 
cuits, throw them into a wagon or into barrels and take 
them to the field where they may be planted as one would 
plant potatoes, only covering not so deep. The better 
the land the better the Bermuda grass. It will grow, 
however, on rather thin soils, if it must. It is well in 
planting it to make a good seedbed by plowing and har- 



BERMUDA GRASS 



113 




Bermuda Grass (Cynadon Dactylon). 



114 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

rowing, just as one would for a cultivated crop, then 
furrow in shallow furrows about 3' apart, drop the sods, 
push them in with the foot and with a drag make the 
surface smooth again. If afterward the weeds are kept 
mowed, the Bermuda will within one year make a dense 
sod. 

Bermuda grass loves intense heat. Frost kills it and 
freezing the roots is often fatal to it. There are strains 
hardier than others, and in Oklahoma there seems to 
have developed a strain of unusual hardiness. It is of 
little use after frost, as the leaves do not seem to retain 
their virtues in winter as do the blades of many northern 
grasses. Nor will it start early in spring ; it awaits warm 
weather. 

Bermuda is the bluegrass of the South. It makes a 
similar but tougher sod. It yields a very great amount 
of forage on suitable soil. It affiliates well with clovers, 
especially with little white clover. I feel assured that 
on a bit of sandy loam alluvial soil in Louisiana set to 
Bermuda, grass and white clover, I have seen more cat- 
tle, pigs, horses and mules grazed than I have ever seen 
on a similar area anywhere else in the world. It is not 
very productive on poor or dry soils, yet it may do more 
than any other grass would do there. It is a most effi- 
cient soil binder where there is danger of erosion, and 
river levees in the South are always sodded as soon as 
they are completed. It will stand more or less submerg- 
ence, but to be under water for a long time will destroy 
it. Bermuda grass is little seen north of Tennessee, 
southern Missouri and Oklahoma, though it is a little in 



BERMUDA ON POOR SOILS 115 

use in southern Kansas. It is not a grass for arid lands 
nor for regions of frequent frost. It is essentially a 
pasture grass, yet under favorable conditions, rich, moist 
soils, it may be cut for hay several times during the sum- 
mer. The yield is hard to estimate. Planters have re- 
ported as much as 4 or more tons to the acre, taken in 
four or more cuttings. It is a grass that soon gets woody 
and wiry unless either mown off or grazed close. The 
closer it is grazed on rich, moist land the better it is. 
It is said that an acre of well-set Bermuda grass will 
carry 10 sheep for 10 months. I fear the sheep thus 
confined would sicken of parasites in less time than that, 
but it would not be the fault of the grass if they did. 

It has been often said that attention to Bermuda grass 
would revolutionize the South. This, unfortunately, is 
not' quite easy of accomplishment. It is not true that 
very productive Bermuda grass would cover all the old 
cotton fields and gullied hillsides. It might be made 
to grow there in time, and no other grass would grow 
there so well, yet there is no mysterious power in Ber- 
muda grass that will find fertility where it has not been 
put by Nature or man. On worn soils Bermuda grass 
will need to be fed. 

Bermuda Grass on Poor Soils. — If one has any sort 
of manure he is indeed fortunate, and no other prepara- 
tion will be needed than to manure the land, plow it, 
and plant the sods. The difficulty with the South is, how- 
ever, that there is usually not much manure available 
and recourse must be had to other means. A good prepa- 
ration would be to turn under a crop of cowpeas. The 



116 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

land could then be fertilized well, using whatever arti- 
ficial fertilizer best suited the soil, then the Bermuda 
grass planted and at the right time sowing little white 
clover. One can not use the large-growing clovers with 
Bermuda grass, since it will not endure shade. It is 
really a tropical grass and revels in heat and sunlight. 
Bur clover grows with it fairly well, but white clover 
fits it best of all, and fortunately this clover is native to 
nearly all the South. Lespedeza grows fairly well with 
Bermuda grass and this also may be sown after the grass 
has been planted. 

Weeds are the bane of Bermuda grass. When well- 
shaded it dies. I once wondered why in the dooryard 
lot of a southern plantation that I was studying there 
was not one sprig of Bermuda grass, though it was 
abundant on the levee bank a few hundred feet away. 
Later I learned that there had been a fine Bermuda lawn 
there for many years and only the rank weeds that sprang 
up during a temporary abandonment of the place had 
killed the grass. On the levee trespassing cows had kept 
the land clear enough to perpetuate the grass. In one year 
we re-established the grass in the lawn. It is indeed a 
marvel of rapid establishment on good soil. The lesson 
is to mow off the weeds once or twice a" year while es- 
tablishing the grass. Afterward, when in pasture, there 
will be few or no weeds to trouble. A pure stand of 
Bermuda and white clover, hard-grazed, on rich land, 
is as clean a thing as one will ever find. On thin, poor 
soils it will pay exceedingly well to fertilize the Bermuda 
pasture. I should do this very early in spring, or, if 



ERADICATING BERMUDA GRASS 117 

white clover can make a winter growth, as in the Gulf 
States, do it in the fall. This fertilization may be of 
any enriching material. Acid phosphate will stimulate 
the clover; bonemeal is perhaps better, or one may use 
a complete fertilizer. The object is to make the white 
clover grow as vigorously during the cool part of the 
year as it can. While it is growing it is filling the land 
with nitrogen which later on the Bermuda grass will 
use. Do not graze the clover down close if you wish 
to get the most good from it. Unquestionably it would 
add tremendously to the wealth of the South to put Ber- 
muda grass over a great proportion of the plowed land 
there. It stops erosion and builds soil. There has long 
been in the minds of southern men a deadly fear of Ber- 
muda grass — fear that it could not be eradicated when 
they wished to farm the land. 

Eradicating Bermuda Grass. — There is no great diffi- 
culty in destroying Bermuda grass on most soils. Assur- 
edly one needs to know its nature and go at it intelli- 
gently. It is best to combat it with shade.> The land 
may be plowed in the f^ and jsown fb wh^t or oats. 
In order to have a rank grdwm of ather of these grains, 
fertilize the land well. Harvest the crop, preferably for 
hay, before the Bermuda makes much growth in the 
spring, and at once plow thoroughly again. Here the 
worn, half-starved mule of the negro tenant farmer must 
be replaced by the well-fed span of the modern intelligent 
farmer. It requires motive power to do things right. 
Sow the land to cowpeas or velvet beans, choosing a 
very prolific variety that makes much vine. The peas 



118 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

had better be cultivated and fertilized as well. When 
they are taken off the land will be free from Bermuda 
grass and in more fertile condition than ever before. 
When the peas come off it may be sown again to wheat, 
vetches, alfalfa or some suitable clover. The following 
spring it may safely be put to corn or cotton. 

Choice of Land for Bermuda Grass. — I observe the 
best Bermuda growing on sandy loams or on the loess 
soils along the Mississippi River. On hard clays and 
"buckshot" lands it does not yield nearly so well, mainly 
because when tramped by stock these lands become so 
very hard that they dry out badly and the Berm.uda suf- 
fers an almost continuous thirst. 

Bermuda Grass in Oklahoma. — I have seen nothing 
finer than the Bermuda grass lawns and pastures of Ok- 
lahoma. John Fields, former director of the Oklahoma 
Experiment Station, was the first to see the great value of 
this grass for that state of hot sun and summer dryness, 
and his efforts have resulted in thousands of Bermuda pas- 
tures being planted there. L. A. Moorhouse in Bulletin 
75 of the Oklahoma station writes thus of the history of 
Bermuda grass : 

"Bermuda grass is a well-known plant in our southern states. 
It has been grown in the south for more than three-quarters of 
century, and many are, therefore, familiar with the characteristics 
of this plant. According to the most authentic records this grass 
was formerly introduced from the tropical regions of the east, and 
it is not indigenous to the Bermuda Islands as the name might lead 
us to suppose. One of the earliest records of the appearance of 
this plant in America dates back to 1825, at which time it was 
found growing in Georgia. It was distributed to some extent at this 
early date; thus this grass has come to be of economic importance 



HOW BERMUDA PROPAGATES 



119 




120 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

in southern sections. Bermuda grass seed was sown in Oklahoma 
in 1892, and a set was secured in the Experiment Station grass 
garden. The frosts of winter damaged the stand to some extent; 
however, a subsequent analysis of the plot led to the selection of 
some plants which survived these low temperatures. These plants 
when reset came through the winter in good condition, and a new 
growth started quite early in the spring. Later studies with regard 
to this feature have demonstrated the fact that this selection pos- 
sessed a characteristic which has been described as hardiness. 

"In referring to the initial selections the following outline was 
made a matter of record in Oklahoma Bulletin No. 70, entitled 
'Hardy Bermuda Grass' : Close observation of several different 
plats of Bermuda grass indicated that some of it withstood the cold 
weather better than others and began growing as early as April 1, 
even after a hard winter. In order to test this characteristic more 
carefully a large planting of roots was made early in July, 1904. 
Part of the roots were taken from a plat recently grown from seed. 
Other roots were taken from a plat that had been growing for at 
least 10 years and which may have started from seed sown in 1892. 
Its source is not known, but it is certain that this grass passed 
through the freeze of February, 1899, when the temperature fell 17 
degrees below zero with no snow on the ground. Little difference 
was shov/n in the growth of the grass from the different plats, 
and there was a heavy growth over all the field before frost. In 
the spring of 1905, after an unusually severe winter with a tempera- 
ture of 18° below zero, there was a marked difference. On March 
29 all of the Bermuda grown from acclimated roots was green 
and growing vigorously. It soon covered the ground perfectly to 
the exclusion of crab grass. When roots recently grown from seed 
were planted, all the previous season's growth was killed ; new 
growth did not start from the roots until May, and then only in 
patches. There was more crab grass than Bermuda grass on this 
plat throughout the season. 

"Bermuda grass roots have been sent out to a large number of 
districts within this state. Within the past 15 years a large num- 
ber of the standard grasses have been grown on trial plots at the 
station farm, and it has, therefore, been possible to compare these 
types not only with Bermuda grass, but they have also been com- 
pared with our native pasture grasses. For the average upland 
soils of central Oklahoma Bermuda grass is superior to such types 



FITTING SOIL FOR BERMUDA 121 

as Kentucky bluegrass, English bluegrass or meadow fescue, and 
Bromus inermis or brome grass ; after making these tests we are 
also firmly convinced that Bermuda grass has a wide range of 
profitable culture in the new state. In making field trials with the 
grasses which have been mentioned, it should be observed that 
some success might attend the efforts of the husbandman if these 
grasses were grown on very fertile soil, as the rich alluvial river 
and creek bottom lands of the state ; but we must remark that 
such areas are ideal for the culture of alfalfa, and, wherever this 
forage plant can be grown, it should be given the preference. The 
common grasses do not return more than two cuttings per season 
at best, and the yield per acre would not exceed 2 or 25^ tons; 
alfalfa, on the other hand, makes at least five crops per season, and 
will bring all the way from 5 to 7 tons per acre on such land. The 
lesson which ought to be drawn from this discussion may be stated 
briefly : Use the best land on the farm for alfalfa ; the poorer sec- 
tions can be set aside for the growth of Bermuda grass. 

"In rolling sections large ditches or gullies are frequently 
washed out by the roadsides, and if no attempt is made to check 
this erosion the road bed itself may be cut to such an extent that 
it will be impossible to haul heavy loads over that portion. Ber- 
muda grass may be used to check such washes. It may also be 
planted on very rolling fields. We have many field illustrations in 
this section which serve to show that continuous culture, whether 
it be with corn or cotton, results in such a disfiguration of the sur- 
face that many portions are finally discarded. Areas of this char- 
acter should be devoted to pasture, and if planted to Bermuda, 
the soil will remain intact. Bermuda grass furnishes an excellent 
covering for pond banks, and it may also be planted in districts 
where the sand has a tendency to drift or blow." 

Preparation of Soil. — "Fields which are to be set to Bermuda 
grass should receive almost as careful preparation as in cases 
where the land is to be used for the production of corn or cotton. 
Although this grass is a persistent and vigorous grower and thrives 
fairly well, when planted on a poorly-prepared surface, it will 
respond readily to good treatment. It can be grown on all t)'pes 
or classes! of soil, from the sandy or open type down to the heavj'' 
impervious clay soils. If the soil is open in structure and does not 
have a tendency to bake, the plowing may be done two or three 
weeks prior to planting; the heavier soils should be plowed early 



122 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

in the season. A few severe frosts assist materially in securing a 
mellow surface or seed bed. A few days prior to planting the field 
can be worked down thoroughly with a disk harrow, and later, may 
be brought into level form with a smoothing harrow. In latitudes 
as far north as central Oklahoma Bermuda grass does not produce 
very much pasture after the middle of November, and the plants 
lie dormant during the winter months. The new growth starts as 
early as March 15, and if the spring is open, some pasture may be 
secured from the field during the latter part of April. Bermuda 
grass makes its best growth during the warm summer weather, 
and, for this reason, it is not advisable to plant roots much before 
the first of May. We prefer to do this work in May, at which time 
the soil is usually moist; hence the roots commence to grow and 
spread as soon as they are placed in the soil. We have already 
stated that it is not advisable to use seed. The planting season, 
then, opens about the first of May and the work may be continued 
throughout ^Miay and June. Fairly satisfactory sets have been ob- 
tained in cases where the roots were planted as late as July 15. 
The later plantings are not as desirable as the earlier plantings, 
for the reason that the dry summer weather checks the root in its 
growth, and a dense turf cannot be produced during the latter part 
of the season unless the weather is ideal." 

Method of Planting. — "After the soil has been cultivated thor- 
oughly it may be marked off in rows 30" to 36" apart and small 
pieces of Bermuda roots may be dropped at intervals of 18" in 
the shallow furrows or rows. A corn-marker or a cultivator with 
two heavy shovels set at the proper distance may be used to open 
the furrows. The roots should be covered with a small quantity 
of earth. It is not a difficult matter to provide this covering either 
by using a hoe, or by moving the earth with the foot as the roots 
are dropped. If the seed bed is loose and will permit the rapid 
escape of soil moisture, this condition may be changed by using 
a roller on the field. Some growers make a practice of harrow- 
ing after the sods have been planted, but this operation has a ten- 
dency to bring many of the roots to the surface; hence they fail 
to grow. Others prefer to scatter the roots broadcast and disk 
them in; however, this method has not given as satisfactory results 
as the first plan. Bermuda plants produced from seed have in 
some cases made a fair showing the first season, but many lack 
vigor and severe frosts will destroy the major portion of them." 



CARPET GRASS 



123 




Carpet Grass (Psispalum compressum) : a, attachment of spikelets to rachis; 
b and c, spikelets; d, floret. 



124 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

Carpet Grass (The Paspalums). — There are several 
species of paspalum. They are low, creeping, spreading 
grasses that come in moist land in the South. They make 
the best grazing on the lowland prairies of Florida, and 
are often seen in Louisiana. Animals like to graze on 
carpet grass, but it is less nutritious than Bermuda, 
which it sometimes crowds out. I do not know that seed 
of these native carpet grasses is ever sold ; it is sometimes 
spread by cutting the ripe stems and spreading them over 
the land. The carpet grasses are good pasture grasses 
and are mentioned here because probably southern read- 
ers may desire to know how good a thing they may have 
growling wild. Compared with Bermuda the paspalums 
are hardier, and are green in cold weather, though they 
do not actually grow unless there is some warmth in the 
soil. They are easily eradicated by land cultivation. 

Texas Blue grass (Poa arichnifera). — Perhaps this 
should have been described among the poas. It is left 
for this place because it is distinctively a southern grass. 
If only it had some way of easy distribution and seed- 
ing, it would be an invaluable grass for sj^u^hern , soils!. 
It makes a very beautiful sward, which is green at near- 
ly all seasons in the South. It is thus far better than 
Bermuda grass for a lawn. In Kansas, Prof. Shelton re- 
ports that it is hardy and that it yields three or four 
times as much as Kentucky bluegrass. The seed of Tex- 
as bluegrass is very light and peculiar, having a cobwebby 
feel. I have not been able to get a stand of grass by sow- 
ing the seed, though it has a way of thickening itself af- 
ter the manner of poas when one gets a thin stand. It is 



TEXAS BLUEGRASS 



125 




Tesas Bluegrass (Foa arachnifera). 



126 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

better spread by planting small bits of sod as one would 
potatoes, only covering no more than an inch deep. The 
sod may be cut into pieces no more than an inch square, 
so that a little of it will go a good way, but as it does 
not spread so very rapidly the bits should be placed about 
one foot apart. Texas bluegrass likes good soil. If I 
were living in the South I should endeavor to establish 
it in my garden, whence I could transplant it to the lawn, 
and later perhaps to permanent pasture. 

St. Atigustine Grass (Stcnotaphrum dimideaton). — 
This grass is used in Florida as a lawn grass. It seems 
to thrive on very poor sandy soils, and to make an ex- 
cellent sod. It seems hardy as far north as Charleston, 
but is not seen far from the coast. It is planted by cut- 
tings, as is Bermuda grass. 

Quack Grass (Agropyrimi re pens). — Death is a thing 
that is pretty sure to happen to the other fellow. No one 
ever considers that it may happen to him. The same 
thing is true of our enemy, quack grass. We see it on 
other men's farms, and complacently believe that it will 
never attack our own. It is in low^a, Minnesota, New 
York; it will never come to Ohio or Illinois, so we im- 
agine. Take it from me that quack grass can and will 
come to all regions north of the Ohio River, and I see 
no reason why it should not thrive far south of that. 
When it comes it comes unannounced. You do not dream 
that you have it till it has made a few patches in your field 
so tough that men can not cultivate through them; then 
you begin to w^onder what it is that has possession of you. 
It takes you after that several years really to awaken to a 



QUACK GRASS 



127 




Quack Grass (AgTop3n:um — ^triticum — ^repens). 



128 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

realization of what it means to root it out. After all, 
quack grass is one of the best of pasture grasses. If one 
cared only for pasturing a field he need not desire a bet- 
ter grass. It is like bluegrass in its habit of growth, only 
the running underground stems or rootstocks are long- 
er, and penetrate deeper. One can turn up a sod of blue- 
grass and have every rootstock so that the whole mass 
is easily killed. This is not so easy with quack g'rass, as 
it roots too deeply for that. It is a good pasture grass 
for that very reason. It grows from i' to 3' high and 
makes a dense mass of leaves and stems. The forage is 
sweet and good. It makes a lot of hay on good soil, but 
one should cut it before any seed stems form, else it will 
seed further areas by the seeds getting in the manure. 

Quack grass is a pest in Europe. In England it gets 
into the alfalfa meadow and destroys it in a few years. 
It is harder there to destroy than here, because there the 
earth seldom becomes dry enough to kill roots not actu- 
ally raked out into the air. In Iowa it has been said that 
the value of a farm infested with quack grass was cut in 
two. In Minnesota it is very troublesome. I once at- 
tended a number of farmers' institutes in Minnesota and 
it was amusing to observe that in our question box at 
every point were several questions alike, ''How can I kill 
quack grass ?" 

On rich black soil if quack is left to thicken for a few 
years it is all but impossible to plow through a sod of it. 
It is impossible ta cultivate through it with ordinary cul- 
tivators ; they will not pass through the tough sod. It is 
well, therefore, to take it in time. It came to Woodland 



ERADICATING QUACK GRASS 129 

Farm all unawares. We got the seed in some grass mix- 
ture, and before we knew it, it had become a pest. There 
had been brome grass in the field and we thought at first 
we were only having trouble with that. Later we learned 
with a good deal of alarm what had possession of us, and 
began to fight it rather vigorously. At the outset we 
plowed the field very thoroughly and with the harrow 
kept the grass down till corn could be planted. We be- 
gan to cultivate the corn before it was up, and cultivated 
it deep and often. To our joy the grass proved under 
our Ohio sun easy to kill, once the roots were thrown up 
to its rays. Twice during the summer men went through 
the field with hoes and carefully dug out what the plows 
had missed. To get after the worst patches I had spe- 
cial tools made by taking 4-tined hay forks and having 
their tines bent at right angles like human fingers. These 
scratchers will dig down into a patch of quack grass and 
pull out every root. It is not enough to cut off the tops 
unless it is done more often than is practicable on the 
ordinary farm. One must dig out the roots. To our de- 
light the enemy has been put to flight. At really very 
slight expense more than we should have taken to give 
the corn thorough tillage, we have the grass so subdued 
that it is rather hard to find. As I write men are search- 
ing carefully for stray plants of it. We will repeat this 
promising method next year and hope thus entirely to 
eradicate it. 

We are foolish if we let quack grass encroach on our 
cornbelt farms. It is sure to be a worse pest in the land 
where small grain is the chief reliance. It must have a 



130 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

hoed crop — a crop that can have deep cultivation in or- 
der to subdue it. 

First then, to know it, be on lookout for it. One can 
not trust to one's men for this; they are not sufficient- 
ly close observers. When you see a suspiciously persist- 
ent grass in your cultivated field go at once and dig to 
see what sort of root it has. The top of quack grass is 
not unlike timothy at first; the blades are. narrower; when 
it heads the head is distinctly different but it will not 
head maybe for a year or two; do not wait to see that. 
Dig down and see if it has that running underground 
rootstock, about as large as a shoestring, with its sharp 
point, shooting out after new space to fill. If you find 
that get busy. Do not dread it, do not worry over it, but 
above all do not procrastinate a day; get action of some 
sort. Salt will not kill it unless enormous amounts are 
used. Dig it out ; cut it off deep under the ground but as 
far as you can; get the roots out where they will dry. 
Then "do it now^" Do not put it off; if you have only a 
few' patches of the grass today you may have a solid field 
of it in a few years. 

It has been said that there is no more valuable pasture 
grass for Nebraska and Dakota than this, and it may be 
true; it is assuredly a sweet, nutritious grass and rather 
heavy-yielding. I should sow brome grass though, for 
there is no doubt as to our ability to get rid of that when 
we wish. 

Nimhlewill. — This is often mistaken for quack grass. 
It is a branching grass, with a peculiar odor. It has 
sharp-jointed creeping rootstocks and also makes a bad 



NIMBLEWILL A BAD WEED 



131 




Nimblewill (Muhlenbergia Diffusa). 



132 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

weed, but it does not send out so long underground run- 
ners and so spreads very much less. Moreover, one can 
with one pull of a hoe unearth every bit of a clump of 
it and shake off the earth so that it dies. I do not know 
the real value of nimblewill, but advise its extermination. 
Like quack grass it is very bad for alfalfa, and soon 
crowds it out. 

Eradicating Quack in the Northzvest. — For some rea- 
son the grass is harder to destroy and spreads more rap- 
idly in northern regions than elsewhere. It may be be- 
cause of our habit in the cornbelt of frequent rotations 
of corn which is cultivated during hot, dry weather when 
the grass is easiest killed, while the northern regions are 
more given over to crops of small grain. Prof. Henry 
L. Bolley of the North Dakota Experiment Station thus 
relates his method of destruction in The Breeder's Ga^ 
zette : 

"To give advice to farmers whose lands are now over-run by 
quack grass may seem as though adding insult to unavoidable in- 
jury, for to quack grass extermination there is no easy road. No 
spraying method for eradication of this grass is economically pos- 
sible while other crops are to be grown. Direct application of salt 
to the areas has not proved satisfactory. If in small patches up- 
root it in dry hot weather and as far as possible, remove all 
underground stems. Visit the areas once every eight or 10 days 
and remove every apparent spear of grass with the attached under- 
ground stem. Or cut it off in July and cover closely with tar paper 
so as to quite exclude the light. Allow the paper to remain there 
through July and August; then plow deeply. Or cut it off closely 
in July and cover deeply with straw or manure. Visit the areas 
often. Dig up any scattering plants not covered. 

"If in large areas, mow the grass off when in blossom, break 
the sod shallow (not to exceed two inches) in mid-July. Back-set 
in mid-August at a depth but slightly deeper than before. Then 



LEGUMINOUS CROPS 133 

disc and harrow throughout the fall never allowing any green 
leaves to show. Then plow deeply in the late fall. Plant a culti- 
vated crop the following season and follow the cultivator with a 
hoeman who looks for every spear of the grass. Or, after thor- 
oughly preparing the seed bed in the spring give it a heavy seeding 
of German millet, say, 2 to 2^ pecks of good seed, preferably sown 
broadcast. Sow the millet late in May. At no time during this 
process of field preparation should the quack grass be allowed to 
show green and if possible the ground should never be worked 
while wet. The drier the ground and hotter the weather the better 
the killing effect of the cultivation. Any annual forage crop which 
will give a dense and rapid growth may be substituted for millet 
though I think it has no equal unless it is fodder corn sown broad- 
cast." 

THE LEGUMES. 

For a full and valuable account of the cultivated leg- 
umes I refer the reader to "Forage and Fiber Crops of 
America" by Hunt. Prof. Thos. Shaw also has an ex- 
cellent book on clovers, and Prof. H. Garman of the Ken- 
tucky Experiment Station has an exceedingly valuable 
descriptive bulletin on legumes (No. 98J. Within the 
limits of space assigned to this volume I can give only a 
very superficial account. 

The leguminosae comprise a vast number of plants. 
Some are tiny herbs; some are among the largest trees. 
Among the common ones are the peas, beans, locust trees, 
clovers, alfalfa, cowpeas, soybeans and vetches. It is a 
curious thought that all these plants probably came from 
one stock; the ancestral form of the sweetpea, alfalfa, 
red clover, and locust trees is one and the same. If one 
will look closely one will indeed see that flowers of the 
pea, the bean, the locust tree and even of the clover or al- 
falfa plant are very much the same. There is no other 



134 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

flower with a structure similar to that of the legumes. 
There is often a similarity in seed as well ; the seeds are 
usually in pods of a peculiar and familiar shape — usually 
like little kidneys, though some are round, as the soybeans. 
If one tastes the seeds one is astonished to find them with 
a good deal of similarity of flavor. I have w^hen a boy 
sowing clover seed caught seeds in my mouth and chewed 
them, marveling that they tasted so much like beans or 
peas. Nearly all the legumes have more or less showy 
flowers. Why is this ? Be assured the brilliant coloring 
of the pea or the clover is not meant for your delectation. 
Things do not happen in nature. There is reason for all 
of nature's processes. In the case of the legumes it means 
that they can not pollinate their flowers unless they have 
the aid of insects. The insects find the flowers because 
they are showy. To reward the insects, or rather to in- 
duce them to come and do the work, there is usually found 
in the flower a sweet nectar, deliciously scented. Some 
blooms, such as alfalfa, are most ingeniously arranged so 
that as the insect crawls down the throat of the flower it 
touches a little trigger, the flower violently explodes and 
the pollen-bearing part is thrust vigorously upward to 
perform its work of fertilization. One can imitate the 
work of the bee in the alfalfa plant by scratching the 
throat of the opened flower with a pin point or end of a 
grass blade. All of this is most curious and seems in di- 
rect refutation of any idea that the world came into ex- 
istence without a guiding intelligence. It seems prob- 
able that nature meant the legumes to be always cross- 
fertilized, though this point is as yet uncertain. 



HOW LEGUMES SECURE NITROGEN. 135 

'Acquiring of Nitrogen. — Leguminous plants have a 
high nitrogen content. In the farmer's parlance, they 
make "rich feed." They are rich in protein. Protein is 
the thing in feeds of which the world is most short. Leg- 
umes are rich in nitrogen, and nitrogen is commonly de- 
ficient in soils. Legumes make soils on which they grow 
rich, particularly when they decay on the land or are 
turned under. The farmer knew ages ago that clovers, 
alfalfa and other legumes enriched soils. Within very 
recent years men have learned how this is done. It seems 
to be accomplished by means of micro-organisms living 
on their rootlets or in nodules attached to their roots. 
There is much to learn about this process. 

How the Nitrogen Is Secured. — There is much to be 
learned yet about how this work is done. So far as we 
now know this is the way of it : There are probably a 
number of kinds of bacteria inhabiting leguminous plants. 
Few if any legumes are without their own especial sort 
of bacteria, and each sort produces on its host plant a 
nodule or tubercle. One can find these even on locust 
trees, on wild legumes, on soybeans, cowpeas and clovers 
of all sorts. Some men believe that the bacteria inhabit- 
ing one species will in a little time adapt itself to another 
species, if that chances to be planted on the soil which 
it inhabits ; that is, if alfalfa were sown on land filled with 
red clover-inhabiting bacteria within a few months the 
bacteria of red clover would learn to grow on alfalfa. My 
own observation would not at all support this view. 
True, certain bacteria live on a number of related spe- 
cies. For example, the same bacteria, so far as we know. 



136 



MEADOWS AND PASTURES 




Roots of soy bean, showing nodules. 



BACTERIA FOR LEGUMES 137 

inhabit alfalfa, melilotus and the bur clovers. It seems 
necessary to have separate inoculation for cowpeas and 
soybeans, while sainfoin, which has nearly always been a 
failure in America, is probably a failure in most instances 
through lack of inoculation. Red clover, alsike clover 
and little white clover seem to take the same bacteria, 
while it is doubtful whether crimson clover can get along 
without its specific bacteria. 

One can tell "how it is done" as easily as one can de- 
fine the nature of electricity. What we can see is that 
the bacteria attack the rootlets which very graciously 
build out fleshy coverings for them, ''nodules" or "tu- 
bercles." These nodules vary in size from that of a very 
small seed to the size of a pea or larger. The nodules 
are full of nitrogen and inhabited by millions of bacteria. 
These bacteria are continually reproducing, growing, dy- 
ing, giving up their nitrogen to the soil and plants. The 
bacteria obtain their nitrogen from the air that enters all 
good, dry, pervious soils. When you stop to think of it, 
nearly all leguminous plants thrive best in dry soils that 
the air easily can enter. 

How the bacteria get from one part of the soil to an- 
other, how natural inoculation takes place, we do not 
know. Probably it is done mainly by the washing of 
soils and perhaps sometimes by the wind. Sometimes 
the bacteria do not come until they are artificially intro- 
duced by man. In some neighborhoods the bacteria of 
alfalfa are found everywhere and no inoculating is need- 
ed; in other neighborhoods, alfalfa seeding is a failure 
unless the proper bacteria are introduced. 



138 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

Methods of Inoculation. — The bacteria are readily 
enough grown in cultures, and these cultures may be sent 
in liquid form to the man sowing seed of new legumes 
on soil needing inoculation. The liquid culture is diluted 
with additional water and the seed wet and sown. This 
has usually been found effective. Dry cultures are not 
often successful. The drying of the organism seems 
usually to deprive it of its vitality. Soil may be taken 
from a field where the legume grew and developed tuber- 
cles. This soil may be scattered over the new field and 
at once harrowed in to prevent the bacteria drying and be- 
ing killed by sunlight. This method has given better re- 
sults thus far than any other. There are several ways 
of using this method of soil inoculation. If one is inocu- 
lating a field near another field that has already good in- 
oculation one can take earth and spread it with the ma- 
nure spreader. This is the best method where soil is in 
abundant supply. Follow the spreader close with some 
efficient harrow that will cover the soil from sunlight. 
It seems that either sunlight or drying will usually de- 
stroy the bacteria. It is well, then, when it can be done, 
to apply the soil after 4 o'clock in the afternoon and at 
once follow with the harrow, stirring it into the soil. 
Where soil is harder to secure one may sow a very small 
amount and yet get inoculation, if only it is well spread 
and carefully covered. Often in sowing alfalfa seed I 
have directed the use of 100 pounds of soil mixed with 20 
pounds of seed, the two sown together. This has given 
good inoculation. Or, one may make one's soil fine by 
sifting, wet the seed and mix with it soon after wetting 



CLOVERS NEED INOCULATION 139 

just enough soil to make it so that it can be sowed again. 
This gives good inoculation. Or again, one may simply 
leach water through infected soil and apply the water to 
the seed. This method is said to have been successfully 
used at the New Jersey station. 

Curiously enough, when stable manure has been applied 
liberally to soils, they are often found inoculated with bac- 
teria belonging to certain clovers that may never have 
been grown there, and none of the substance of which had 
been applied to the manure. For example, alfalfa sown 
on manured land seldom needs any additional inoculation 
to cause it to be covered with nodules; whereas on land 
adjoining none could be seen. This has been frequently 
observed even when no alfalfa hay had ever been fed in 
the barn whence the manure came, and is a mystery yet 
to be cleared up. 

Clovers Needing Inoculation. — Crimson clover seldom 
thrives except when inoculated, and inoculation is by no 
means common in the South until the clover has been 
grown for several years. The fact that it grows up so 
slenderly when not inoculated has caused many experi- 
menters in the South to discard this very valuable winter- 
growing plant. I have observed in Tennessee that inocu- 
lated plants made more than lo times the growth that 
non-inoculated plants made close by. If one wishes to 
grow crimson clover in a new region of the South one 
should inoculate at least a small area, whence later earth 
could be taken for inoculating larger areas. An acre will 
inoculate a county, the earth rightly used. A flower-bed 
of crimson clover in the garden may be the source of soil 



140 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

for a needy field. Bur clovers need inoculation on many 
soils, especially those away^ f rom the limestone and river 
bottoms. Alfalfa quite generally needs inoculation in 
eastern and southern soils. For some unexplained rea- 
son alfalfa on alluvial land commonly needs no inocula- 
tion. This is true of the land along the Mississippi and 
Missouri Rivers. Whence came the bacteria there? It 
is a curious thought. Alfalfa needs no inoculation any- 
where west of the Missouri River, so far as I have seen. 
Doubtless there are soils where it does not early find the 
right bacteria, but the other conditions are so favorable 
that it manages to get along till the bacteria arrives — 
whence, we do not know. In the East it would die await- 
ing its allies. Along the Pacific Coast in Oregon and 
Washington I think inoculation is often useful for alfalfa. 
This is the verdict of many growers in that region. 

Vetches need inoculation on many, if not most, soils. 
Without inoculation the growth is very small and poor. 
With it there may easily be a hundred times the weight 
of plant that would be seen otherwise. If one sows 
vetches on land unused to them and gets only a few 
thrifty plants one should sow again the following year 
and maybe then one wall find the inoculation good. * 

Soybeans need inoculation nearly everywhere. One 
can either secure earth which when powdered one can sift 
over and mix through the seed, or sow earth over the land 
as one would for alfalfa, mixing it in promptly. The sec- 
ond year of soybeans usually sees good inoculation, often 
when no artificial means have been used. Curiously 
enough the varieties vary in their ease of inoculation, 



CONDITIONS FAVORING BACTERIA 14l 

some vigorous sorts taking it much more rapidly than 
Others of the more moderate-growing kinds. 

All New Legumes May Need Inoculation. — I once tried 
to grow gorse plants in Ohio. Gorse is a common shrub 
in Europe, bearing a yellow, pea-shaped bloom. Though 
in good soil, still they refused to grow, probably because 
I had neglected to bring their peculiar bacteria with the 
seed. Whenever one is establishing clovers, cowpeas, soy- 
beans or any new legumes, one is wise if he finds some 
source of infected soil to start the bacteria at work. The 
little white clover is the one thing spread by nature from 
northern Canada to the Gulf, which has always its bac- 
teria, with it. It is astonishing how much inoculation 
usually helps. I have growing in good garden soil, plants 
of Cassia occidentalis, a common leguminous plant of 
Louisiana, there called "coffee weed." It will grow there 
nearly 6 inches a day and has nodules as large as peas 
thickly studded on its roots. Here, on rich soil and dur- 
ing weather as hot as Louisiana often sees, the growth 
without nodules is no more than 2 inches in a week. 

Conditions Favoring Bacteria. — Good agriculture is es- 
sentially practice that favors helpful bacteria. When con- 
ditions are right for them they are steadily gathering 
nitrogen from the air, adding it to the soil, and it is then 
taken up by plants. Experiment has shown that there 
may be gathered by the legumes very great amounts of 
atmospheric nitrogen, as much in one year as would cost, 
were one to buy it, $30 or more, on one acre. Thus, 
when legumes thrive, when the soil conditions are right 
for them and the bacteria are abundant and active, one 



142 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

may see the soil become richer and richer year by year. 
Even when the legumes are each year removed from the 
land the soil may accumulate nitrogen. Hunt gives an 
instance of a soil area at Lupitz which bore 28 successive 
crops of lupines which were removed and nothing sup- 
plied but kainit. Notwithstanding the large amount of 
nitrogen removed from the field it was found to make 
a steady gain in soil nitrogen. The conditions that favor 
the useful bacteria are that the land shall be moist but 
not wet, shall have air entering it somewhat freely, and 
shall be alkaline, not acid, in its reaction. The presence 
of a considerable amount of carbonate of lime in the soil 
is very favorable to these nitrifying bacteria. It is clear 
that they can do nothing in a waterlogged soil, since it 
has in it no air. It has been abundantly proved that sour 
soils are unfriendly to legumes and unfriendly to their 
allies, the bacteria. Indeed it may be true that the one 
reason why sour soils are unfriendly to legumes is that 
the bacteria will not increase there. 

Carbonate of Lime and Legume Growing. — It is very 
noticeable that in regions with much carbonate of lime in 
the soil wild legumes are abundant. In the semi-arid re- 
gions, where soils are usually rich in lime — because it has 
never been leached away, one often finds a great number 
of species of legumes. Such soils are so well filled with 
many kinds of bacteria that few legumes growing on 
them need inoculation in order to start out vigorously as 
soon as sown. In other soils, where lime is wanted, one 
finds few or no legumes at all. I was recently engaged 
in studying certain mountain soils in California and dur- 



CARBONATE OF LIME FOR SOILS 143 

ing several days' riding I saw hardly any leguminous 
plants. Analysis of that soil showed me what I expected 
to find, that it was most markedly deficient in carbonate 
of lime. At the same time it is so markedly unproductive 
that no successful efforts have been made to grow on it 
grain or gardens without manures. On other soils in 
similar location and altitudes where much carbonate of 
lime was found in the soil, the number of wild peas, 
vetches, lupines and other leguminous plants was aston- 
ishing, and when that soil was plow^ed its fertility was 
found to be very great. It is the truest thing in nature 
that legumes make soil rich and carbonate of lime makes 
legumes grow thriftily. This lesson has long been under- 
stood in the Old World. There since the history of agri- 
culture was first written lime has been used as a soil- 
corrective to make it produce legumes so that it may 
gather riches and feed man. Indeed, the fathers did better 
than the sons are doing today, for the increased use of 
commercial fertilizers has to some extent displaced lime, 
and the result has in many instances been evil. I have 
seen land in Scotland reclaimed from barren heaths in 
the following manner: First, deep drains to lead away 
the surplus moisture, then the use of "20 cartloads of 
lime" to the acre (unburned marl or chalk, I think, was 
used), afterward good plowing, then a moderate amount 
of manure, and seeding to grasses and clovers. Thus 
were meadows established where nothing but wild heaths 
had grown before, and on these meadows sheep were fed, 
phosphorus sprinkled from time to time with manure, till 
at last a very rich, productive soil was gained, almost 



144 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

unbelievable in its contrast to the barren, heath-covered 
soil only across the wall. 

Most plants crave nitrogen; men work for it; women 
and children starve and die for it by thousands every 
year, while nitrogen exists in unstable compounds, and 
if we do not use care it is soon gone from us. Infertile 
soils are nearly always nitrogen-hungry. With enough 
nitrogen in our soils we could easily support two blades 
of grass where one grows now, with all that that implies 
in added comfort for greater numbers of men and women 
in the world. 

Air and Our Nitrogen Supply. — There are few spots 
on the world where nitrogen is found in such combina- 
tions that it can be mined and used. Over each acre of 
soil there exists about 75 million pounds of atmospheric 
nitrogen. The one way that we can get it changed into 
form that we can use is by means of the bacteria in the 
soil. True, the electrician with command of tremendous 
electric power, can secure nitrogen compounds that the 
farmer may use, and this is being done in a small way in 
Norway and elsewhere, but the farmer may have on his 
own place a complete establishment for nitrogen-gather- 
ing that will work silently and surely, day and night dur- 
ing the growing season. In order to have this, however, 
he must first store in his soil a supply of carbonate of 
lime. It is true, then, that adding carbonate of lime to 
a lime hungry soil, and then planting it to legumes, is as 
though one added nitrate of soda to the land. Nitrate of 
soda will do wonders in making crops grow, but it is 
costly to buy. When one grows clovers, cow^peas, vetches, 



IMPROVING SOILS WITH LEGUMES 145 

alfalfa, or any other nitrogen-gathering legume accom- 
panied by its particular form of bacteria, in a soil favor- 
ing the bacterial life on the legumes, one is indeed in- 
creasing one's nitrogen store very fast. 

The amount of nitrogen gathered w^ill vary accord- 
ing to the sort of plant grown, and then according as 
the soil is fitted to make large growth of legumes. That 
is, in order to help plants in their work of nitrogen gath- 
ering, one should make the conditions as favorable as 
possible in all things except supplying nitrogen. The 
plant that comes to a soil rich in carbonate of lime, rich 
in phosphorus and potassium, with air enough in it 
and moisture enough, will gather a great deal more 
nitrogen than one growing in a soil where any of these 
factors are lacking. So if one wishes to enrich soil by 
growing on it cowpeas, clover, or any legume, one 
should begin by making it dry, by plowing well, and 
then supplying what phosphorus may be needed. Thus 
strengthened, the plants will gather very much more nitro- 
gen than if they struggled to grow in a soil inhospitable 
because waterlogged, hard or poor in phosphorus or pos- 
sibly in potassium. 

Dr. Cyril G. Hopkins, experimenting with alfalfa (one 
of the most energetic gatherers of nitrogen) tested plots 
with inoculation against plots without, assuming that 
the uninoculated plots got all their nitrogen from the 
soil. He formd that alfalfa, when supplied with lime 
and phosphorus, gathered about 252 pounds of nitrogen 
per acre, w^orth 15 cents a pound, or $37.80. In con- 
trast a plot having no inoculation, and neither lime nor 



146 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

phosphorus apphed, made about one-third the total yield, 
and, unless bacteria found their way in unaided by man, 
gathered none of its nitrogen from the air. The plain 
fact is that one can afford w^ell to make the conditions so 
that the bacteria will gather nitrogen. Indeed one can not 
afford to farm in anv other manner. 

Humus Aids Nitrifying Bacteria. — It is noticeable that 
where there is much vegetable matter added to the soil, 
legumes thrive especially well, and by aid of their bacteria 
gather especially large amounts of nitrogen. Some leg- 
umes seem more dependent on the aid of humus than 
other. Cowpeas, for example, wnll grow where there is a 
rather small amount of vegetable matter in the soil, while 
red clover enjoys a plentiful supply. The lesson is clear. If 
you would build soils by aid of legumes do all that you 
can first to help them. Make the soil alkaline rather than 
acid by adding to it carbonate of lime, feed it with phos- 
phorus, give it what humus you can, and see that it is sup- 
plied with the right sort of bacteria. Nature may attend 
to this duty, but, in case she has forgotten, do your part. 
Of all the steps needed to make legumes grow and thrive 
one can afford to neglect not one. 

The Purpose of Legumes. — There seems in nature an 
orderly arrangement of things dependent on one another. 
For example, legumes store the earth with nitrogen. 
Grasses feed freely on nitrogen and grow rank when so 
fed. Thus, after clovers have made the land rich, grasses 
come with riotous strength and perchance crowd out the 
clovers. Afterward, when the grasses have depleted the 
soil of nitrogen, the clovers find foothold again. This is 



NITROGEN-GATHERING BACTERIA. 147 

nature's rotation of crops. The legumes exist, their bac- 
teria store the priceless nitrogen, the earth is enriched 
thereby, and all manner of pleasant grains and grasses 
and fruits follow, feeding on this store of nitrogen gath- 
ered mainly by the legumes and their allies, the bacteria. 

Other Nitrogen-Gathering Bacteria. — There seem 
other bacteria, not inhabiting legumes, that can in some 
manner store nitrogen. These are found in soils fairly 
well filled with vegetable matter. In old pasture sods are 
found the azotobacter bacteria, most beneficent organisms, 
storing fertility as they live on decaying leaves, roots and 
stems. There seem no helpful bacteria in any soils devoid 
of humus or legumes. 

Lessons that All May Read. — See that field of oats with 
the sharply-outlined line of dark, rich green? On the 
part growing so rankly stood alfalfa or clover. The 
chances are there is now too much nitrogen there for the 
oats, and they will likely lodge. Corn should have been 
planted instead ; it stands stiff no matter how big it grows 
and no soils are too rich for it. In California on alfalfa 
fields, orchards and orange groves have shown the effect 
of having been planted on alfalfa fields years after the 
alfalfa roots had crumbled to mould. 

Value of Legumes. — Chemical analysis shows legumin- 
ous plants to be rich in protein. Protein makes red flesh, 
blood, milk and brain tissue. Most feed-stuffs are poor 
in protein; legumes come in- to balance the excess of car- 
bohydrates in the grasses and grains. Thus timothy hay 
is too poor in bone and muscle-making material, properly 
to nourish animals ; a portion of clover or alfalfa mixed 



148 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

through it makes it a more nearly perfect feed. In 
America our most common grain, corn, has in it too much 
starch and not enough protein for feed. If one has then 
at hand clover or alfalfa hay one can make a proper bal- 
ance in rations for stock. Animals are quite largely what 
they are fed on. Thus ponies come from poor, barren, 
sour soils having no legumes and only poor grasses ; splen- 
did horses come from pastures rich in carbonate of lime 
and growing mixtures of grasses and clovers of several 
species. The horses raised on alfalfa meadows in Cali- 
fornia are among the most perfectly developed in the 
world ; the horses of bluegrass Kentucky eat a fine mix- 
ture of bluegrass and w^hite and red clover. 

Legumes and Grasses Go Together. — While it is true 
that grasses alone are commonly deficient in that essential 
builder, protein, yet it is also true that the legumes are 
commonly too rich in protein and an excess of even a 
good thing may be nearly as harmful as a deficiency. 
Thus animals bloat on alfalfa pasture and horses fed ex- 
clusively and heavily on alfalfa hay may become "soft," 
that is, not enduring, through fatigue caused by an excess 
of the very thing in their blood that would build if fed 
only in right amount. So it is, true that animals graz- 
ing clovers or alfalfa are ravenously hungry for grass 
and if allowed access to it or if grass is grown mixed 
with the clover or alfalfa they will not often bloat. Like- 
wise animals pastured on grass are ravenous for clover 
or alfalfa, nature seeming to teach them what should be 
their diet properly to nourish the whole animal. Diversi- 
fication is good for soils as variety for stock. 



THE CLOVER FAMILY 149 

Effect of Legumes on the Soil. — I have never seen a 
legume that did not leave land better than it found it. 
Clovers penetrate deep with their roots and decaying leave 
channels for both air and moisture. Alfalfa is even more 
vigorous in such work. Vetches leave the soil loose and 
permeable. There is indeed a curious effect on the soil 
of the growing of legumes difficult to explain — the effect 
in making clays friable and hard soils mellow. The ef- 
fect on the succeeding crop is indeed marvelous, especially 
if the whole forage of the legume is turned under or fed 
off on the land by animals. 

Legumes May Not Enrich Soils. — Mooers has shown 
at the Tennessee Experiment Station that cowpeas grown 
in rotation with wheat, the peas cut and carried away 
from the land, apparently reduced fertility instead of in- 
creasing it. Probably the peas drew heavily on the soil's 
store of phosphorus or else drew so heavily on the mois- 
ture of the soil that the wheat following it secured a poor 
start in the fall. Assuredly if the mineral requirements 
of a soil are not given attention the taking away of crops 
of legumes may end in a depleted and unproductive soil. 

THE CLOVERS. 

The very sound of the word ''clover" suggests fields 
of sweet-smelling bloom, bees, birds and sunshine. Take 
away the first letter and you have left ''lover," the best 
estate ever achieved by man, and decapitate the word 
again and you have left "love," the mainspring of action 
in all that is best in the world. There are many species 
and varieties of clover. Curious readers should read the 



150 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

chapter on varieties in Hunt's "Forage and Fiber Crops" 
where 30 species are listed and we are assured that 250 
species exist. Since that book was written several new 
ones have been introduced from the Old World. We 
have not time here even to list them, but must content 
ourselves with describing those that are most commonly 
seen. One may know the clovers by their having leaflets 
in threes and each one attached at the main point, whereas 
in alfalfa and other plants belonging to the family of 
Medicagos the leaflets are differently arranged, with the 
two leaflets set down the mid stem a little way. 

White Clover or Dutch Clover. — I sit to write this be- 
neath an oak tree on the lawn and all about me is the 
green carpet of Kentucky bluegrass and little white clover 
{Trifolium repens). I choose this little clover to head the 
list because it seems the most universally found of any of 
the clovers. I have seen it in every land that I have ever 
visited except in the burning deserts, and even there it 
comes soon after man has begun to pour cooling streams 
of water over the thirsty soil. White clover seed is very 
small and easily carried ; it is probably not digested when 
eaten by animals and thus the animals themselves in their 
journeying have taken it about. While white clover is 
found nearly over all America, yet I think it must be an 
introduced species since had it been truly native to 
America it should have been found on the prairies when 
white men first saw them, and there is no record of this. 

White clover is a creeping plant, seldom rising more 
than i' high, but making a dense mat of herbage over the 
ground. The stems lying on the earth root freely after 



CLOVERS IN PASTURES 



151 



the manner of strawberry runners and thus it rapidly 
covers the land when there is space for it and conditions 
are good. The flower stems may rise up 12" or more 
and sometimes are so thick as to make the field one mass 
of bloom. There is a large species of white clover from 
Italy, called giant broad-leaved white clover. It is said 
to produce twice the herbage of the common sort, but to 
make few seeds. White clover likes rich soil and abund- 







,^ . . ,.- ,-,-'•. •?".>. -HT- > • -„.': ■ 4^f"^0 ) ■«* "w »» f M"'- .«, ,,<^ 



White Clover May 12 in Tennessee. 

ant lime in it. It thrives in moist soil and during cool 
weather. In the north it is green all summer ; in the south 
it nearly disappears during hot weather and reappears in 
the fall, remaining green and beautiful all winter. Thus 
it grows well with Bermuda grass. The amount of white 
clover in the pasture is a fair indication of its fertility of 
soil. One can bring it in by liming and dressing the 
land with phosphorus. Wood ashes, too, have a great 



152 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

effect in bringing in white clover. In Maryland on very 
poor sands I have seen strips of white clover along the 
shell roads where the wheels had powdered the shells into 
dust and it had washed into the soil. Bees love white 
clover, as also do pigs, fowls and all grazing animals. It 
is richer than the larger-growing clovers and makes dur- 
ing the season a large amount of grazing. It is not of 
much value for mowing. The one objection to white 
clover is that after seed forms it sometimes causes horses 
to drip a large amount of saliva or "slobber." They 
should for a short time be taken off white clover pasture. 
It seldom bloats cattle or sheep, as other clovers do, per- 
haps because it is nearly always intermixed with grasses. 
I should add white clover to nearly every pasture mix- 
ture. Men often ask, "Why sow white clover — it comes 
of itself?" The truth is it comes much more abundantly 
and sooner, as a rule, when a little seed is sown. 

Quantity of Seed to Sozv. — The seed is small and 2 
pounds will go well over an acre, so the expense of sow- 
ing is slight. It seems to be easily established, sown 
either very early in spring or, in the South, in fall. The 
seed may lie dormant for years if buried too deeply in 
the soil, growing after being raised near enough to the 
surface so that it can reach daylight — an example of 
the wonderful intelligence of nature. 

Red Clover {Trifoliiim pratense). — This is the most 
common sort of cultivated clover in America, and the one 
of which most has been said and written. There are two 
species, the common red and mammoth {Trifoliiim pra- 
tense perenne). There seems all sorts of intermediate 



MAMMOTH AND RED CLOVERS 



153 



forms between these. If the man exists who can surely 
know mammoth clover from plants of red clover I wish 
introduction to him. In a seedling nursery of several 
thousand clover plants at the Tennessee Experiment Sta- 




Common Red Clover. 



tion Prof. Mooers and I tried vainly to arrive at any con- 
clusions as to characteristic shape of leaf or habit of 
growth that would distinguish the species. The plain 
truth is that red clover is extremely variable in habit of 
growth and character, and one could with little difficulty 



154 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

select and propagate a hundred varieties of it. Many of 
these varieties would be superior, too, to the common 
assortment that one gets in commercial seed. Plants will 
be found having a weak stem, lying almost as prone on 
the earth as wdiite clover; others that stand erect; some 
very leafy; some wath leaves of one shape and some wdth 
another sort. Time of blooming and color and shape of 
bloom vary also and, unfortunately, some of the best 
varieties are poor seed producers. There is also a; white- 
blooming variety; it is strange that some one does not 
propagate it, as it seems to be fully as desirable in man- 
ner of growth as the red. In my opinion there are not 
really two species of red clover, common and mammoth, 
the so-called "mammoth" being a later-blooming form 
of the common red, and a larger-growang variety. 

Red clover is commonly classed as a biennial, living two 
years, ripening seed the second year and dying. It is 
very loosely and irregularly a biennial. Sometimes plants 
will ripen seed the year they are sown, and sometimes 
the conditions will be such that a field will mostly bloom 
and seed the first year. Many of the plants will then 
die, as seed-bearing is the function for which clover lives ; 
others will live another year in weakened condition. Most 
often clover blooms but little the first year, but heavily the 
second year, forming seed and most of the plants dying. 
Always a few plants will survive for three or more years, 
but after bearing seed they do not seem very vigorous or 
useful. It is safe then to call red clover a biennial. 

Habit of Grozvth of Red Clover. — Red clover sends 
down a strong tap root, sometimes to a distance of several 



RED CLOVER INOCULATION 155 

feet into the earth, and, branching, fills the upper soil 
pretty full of fibrous roots. The roots are well covered 
with nodules inhabited by nitrogen-securing bacteria. 
Most of the roots of this clover are found in the upper 
layers of soil. The top branches and many stems are sent 
from one root ; vigorous plants in favoring soil may send 
up as many as 40 or more stems. If the soil and season 
favor, red clover makes a very dense mat over the earth, 
quite effectually smothering out weeds and perhaps favor- 
ing the accumulation of nitrogen by its very shade. 

The nodules on red clover roots are much more easily 
found than on alfalfa and some other legumes, since they 
are more firmly attached and on larger roots. There are 
now few soils that are not inoculated with red clover 
bacteria, though once on prairie lands of Illinois, Iowa 
and other western states red clover repeatedly failed till 
finally by natural causes inoculation came. Red clover is 
grown everywhere throughout eastern America and 
westward till it meets alfalfa in middle Kansas and 
Nebraska. It is found in use along the seacoast in north- 
ern California and the states above. It is a lover of tem- 
perate climes, and in the South, while it will grow and 
yield fairly well, it is inferior to crimson clover as a 
winter-growing plant, and to alfalfa in summer. There 
are regions where red clover is supplanted by alsike clover. 
There are two causes that may make alsike clover more 
vigorous : one is a lack of carbonate of lime in the soil 
and the other the bacterial disease of red clover found 
in Tennessee and parts of Kentucky. The systematic 
rotation of crops corrects many soil troubles. 



156 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

The Soil That Red Clover Likes. — ^^One can form a 
good idea of soil by the way red clover thrives on it. If 
the clover is small, slender, easily displaced by weeds and 
grasses, the soil needs something. Perhaps the need is 
carbonate of lime; in fact, lo chances to one it needs 
that since lime soils will grow healthy, vigorous clover 
even if it is small. Maybe the land needs draining or 
needs phosphorus, less often potassium or vegetable mat- 
ter. Any one of these lacks may be fatal to good clover 
growth. A soil well underdrained, strongly calcareous, 
and with enough phosphorus and a dash of vegetable 
matter thrown in, produces red clover in splendid vigor. 
Wood ashes make red clover grow. On many areas that 
now produce it only sparingly, applications of lime make 
conditions right and it succeeds well. It is the basal 
truth that legumes love lime because alkaline earths favor 
their nourishing bacteria. 

Seed and Seeding. — Red clover seed is commonly 
fairly free from adulterants, especially when one selects 
a seedman wdth some care. True, there are innumerable 
weed seeds found in poorly cleaned red clover seed, but 
most of these can be cleaned out by use of proper ma- 
chinery. The various sorts of plantain are the most com- 
mon weed seeds found, and they make very bad pests in 
new cloverfields. Clover dodder is found sometimes and 
is a deadly weed. A farmer who would cut for seed a 
field infested with dodder must have something wrong 
with his moral faculties. Occasionally clover seed is in- 
tentionally adulterated by seedsmen. Among the things 
put in have been alfalfa and the little trefoils. Alfalfa 



SEEDING RED CLOVER 157 

seed is usually dearer than red clover seed, so there is not 
often danger of its use in this way and one could not 
desire a more harmless substitute if such one must have. 
Commonly red clover is sown in rotation after wheat. 
The usual plan is to sow timothy in the fall, following 
with red clover in March, February or April. Probably 
99 per cent of the red clover sown in America is sown 
broadcast in the spring over fields of wheat, with no other 
effort than scattering the seed. 

Quantity of Seed to Sozif. — Usually lo pounds of seed 
are sown on an acre. When conditions are right this 
plan succeeds well. If the frost loosens the soil or the 
rain beats down and covers the seed, if the soil is fertile 
and well drained, inoculated with the right bacteria and 
with enough lime in it, if the wheat and timothy are not 
too rank-growing, a stand of clover will be secured. In 
my boyhood days we secured wonderful growths of 
clover, but then our lands were newer and richer, with 
more phosphorus and humus in them. Today there is 
greater difficulty in getting stands of clover in this easy, 
hap-hazard manner. A better plan is to wait till the 
ground is dry enough to harrow, say in late March or 
early April, depending on latitude and climatic conditions ; 
then harrow the wheat lightly and sow the seed. After 
the harrow has roughened the surface the seed will be 
covered usually by the first shower, though it may be 
harrowed again with good effect after sowing the seed. 
This harrowing will not often harm the wheat and may do 
it much good. Sown thus, one seldom fails in getting a 
stand of clover. Another plan is to sow twice, the first 



158 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

time early, the second time late, using half the seed at 
each sowing. Five pounds of seed will give enough 
plants for an acre if only half of them grow. Some very 
good farmers follow this practice. 

Solving Clover zvith a Spring Crop. — I can get a better 
stand of clover by sowing it with a spring-sown crop. In 
this manner of sowing I can have the land better pre- 
pared, deeper stirred and less apt to suffer from summer 
drouth. One can sow^ with oats, barley, or flax. Spring 
barley makes a good mother-crop for red clover. One 
should choose a sort that is short and stiff in straw, so that 
it may not lodge. The beardless varieties have proved 
good nurse-crops for clover. Similarly with oats one 
should choose a short-strawed, strong-growing variety 
that is not apt to lodge. Thin seeding of the nurse-crop is 
best. I find a bushel of barley to the acre is enough, and 
three pecks of oats may prove too much if the soil is rich. 
To sow liberally of phosphatic fertilizer with the clover 
will stimulate it to strong growth and make it a better 
stand. One dares not put too much nitrogenous manure 
or fertilizer on the land, else one's oats or barley w^ill be 
too rank in growth and apt to lodge; also bad weeds will 
spring up and choke the clover. Should one desire des- 
perately to get a stand of clover, cut off the nurse-crop 
for hay when it is coming into bloom, or before it lodges. 
Thus taken away, it relieves the young growth which now 
comes rapidly forward. I have taken off a crop of oat 
hay and later in the summer a very fair crop of clover 
hay from the same sowing. Commonly splendid stands 
are secured in this manner. 



TIME OF SEEDING CLOVER 159 

Clover may also be sown alone in spring with first-rate 
success. I do not think the advantage quite sufficient to 
compensate for the loss of the hay or grain crop that 
might have come from wheat, oats or barley as a nurse- 
crop. Clover may be sown in fall on land especially pre- 
pared, usually with good results. Here much depends 
on the nature of the seedbed, which should be fine, firm 
and as moist as one can get it at that time of year. In 
plowing land for fall-seeding of clover one should har- 
row each half day what was plowed immediately before, 
making it at once into a fine, mellow seedbed. If one 
lets it lose its moisture after plowing one will hardly get 
a seedbed in time for fall-sowing. The time of fall- 
sowing depends on the latitude; in Ohio it should be in 
late July or August; in Louisiana it may be in October 
or November. Sometimes it is possible to get a catch of 
red clover by sowing in standing corn at the time of last 
cultivation. In parts of Minnesota and elsewhere this is 
practiced. 

The common use of red clover in America is to sow it 
with timothy in wheat. The first year after sowing there 
will seem to be little timothy and much clover. The fol- 
lowing year the clover is nearly gone and timothy pre- 
vails. Afterward the clover shows but little. I have tried 
to keep stands of clover more than two years by prevent- 
ing its seeding, but have had rather poor success. I 
have tried also patching up thin clover meadows by sow- 
ing more seed, and this too has not usually resulted well, 
the new seedlings not growing ofiF as they should. The 
best results seem to come from plowing red clover after 



160 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

the second year and putting the land to some crop that 
will utilize the fertility that it has stored. Corn or po- 
tato seems the best crop for this place. 

Sowing Clover Mixtures. — I have found that mixtures 
of clovers result in heavier growths and better forage than 
red clover alone. This is especially true when the clover 
is to be pastured. A mixture of red, mammoth and alsike 
clovers with a dash of little wdiite clover and a goodly 
sprinkling of alfalfa has with us resulted in astonishingly 
good pasturage throughout the season. With this can be 
sown timothy if it is for subsequent mowing, though it is 
not of much use if it is to stand for but one season. How- 
ever, the seed is cheap and it will at least repay that much. 

Mammoth Clover. — This was until recently called Tri- 
folmm medium, now Trifolium perenne. It seems rather 
a distinct variety, maturing later, being of coarser growth 
and lasting longer in the ground. While I accept it is a 
distinct variety, yet the common beliefs concerning it are 
mistaken. It has been held that mammoth clover was 
worthless for hay ; that it would not grow after being cut, 
so that two cuttings could not be taken off in one year, 
and that it had little or no value for pasture. The clover, 
as I have observed it, is simply a later-blooming, later- 
maturing variety of common red clover, and there are all 
sorts of intermediates between, perhaps caused by cross- 
fertilization of the blossoms by insects. Mammoth clover 
makes good hay if cut soon enough, though it is coarser 
in stem than the common clover; if cut early it will make 
a second growth the same year, and it makes good graz- 
ing for stock. For poor soils mammoth clover is doubt- 



MAKING CLOVER HAY. 161 

less better than common red; as a soil-improver it has 
some advantage, and to add to pasture mixtures it is prob- 
ably better. One sows mammoth clover exactly as one 
does common red clover and the seed can not be distin- 
guished. Seedsmen find considerable difficulty in getting 
the seeds of these clovers pure and true to name, and this 
difficulty arises in no small measure from the habit of the 
farmer in failing oftentimes to designate whether the 
seed he is offering is of the mammoth or common variety. 
Making Clover Hay. — Volumes have been written 
about making clover hay. To make the best hay, clover 
should be mown before the blooms have turned brown 
and cured as much as possible without too long exposure 
to the bright sun. It should be raked before the leaves 
are crisp enough to powder and fall off, put up in small 
cocks not wide at the base and as high as they can be 
safely piled, left in cocks for a day or two to cure some- 
what, perhaps afterward opened to the sun for an hour 
or more and then hurried to the mow. The test of right 
curing is when one can not by hand-twisting of a wisp of 
the hay cause any moisture to exude. There are, how- 
ever, a thousand contingencies of weather that will inter- 
fere with any well-devised programme of clover hay- 
making in the land of summer showers. One must be a 
schemer, ready to take advantage of sun and wind, 
prompt to act when sudden dark and portentous clouds 
roll up in the west, patient and unstinting in cocking, 
opening out to dry, and cocking again. The alternative 
is to let the heads brown before cutting, mow in the 
morning of a hot, dry day and take to the barn in the 



162 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

afternoon, using the hay-loader and side-delivery rake. 
Thus with the least cost and effort one gets a large 
amount of woody and less nutritious hay. 

Growing Clover Seed. — Clover should be cut for seed 
as soon as the most of the heads have turned brown, and 
left to lie in the sun for a week or more before it is 
threshed. There are clover bunchers that attach to the 
mower cutter-bar that will gather the clover as fast as it 
is cut, or a self-rake reaper may be used. The less the 
clover is handled the better, since the heads readily break 
off. If rain comes it will do no harm; in truth, several 
rains with alternate spells of dry weather will make the 
clover hull all the easier. I have stacked clover seed 
with fair success, but it must stay in stack a long time 
and be well protected from the weather, else it will be 
too tough to thresh well. Ordinarily it is better to 
thresh from the field or else wait till a cold day in win- 
ter, when it may be threshed from the dry stack. Yields 
of clover seed vary from a few quarts to lo bushels from 
an acre. A moderately thin stand, on a soil not too rich, 
makes the most seed. 

Clover Dodder. — Within recent years a new pest has 
come to cloverfields — the slender parasitic vine, called 
dodder. It is an almost leafless yellow vine found twin- 
ing itself about the clover stems which it ties into an in- 
extricable tangle. Wherever it touches a clover stem it 
sends a rootlet into it and preys on the juices of the un- 
fortunate host plant. In time it destroys the clover. It 
spreads rapidly. Dodder comes from seed and is at first 
attached to the earth. As soon as it reaches a clover plant 



DODDER ON RED CLOVER 



163 




Field Dodder on Red Clover; a, Flowering cluster; b, cluster of dry seed vessels. 
From a photogrraph. Natural size. 



164 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

it twines about it and sending in rootlets into it never 
afterward depends on the soil for sustenance. 

Dodder can not all be cleaned from clover seed by use 
of the best machinery. If one finds it in one's field one 
should at once cut ofif the infected spots, and leaving 
the plants lie on the earth let them dry a few days, then 
add straw to them and burn over the spot where the 
dodder grew. In this manner one may easily eradicate 
the pest and prevent one's soil becoming infested with 
dodder seed. It seems little less than criminal to cut 
clover seed from a dodder-infested field, yet evidently 
some farmers do or we should not so often find it in 
clover seed. Laws insuring the purity of agricultural 
seeds have been put on the statute books in several states. 

Clover and Timothy for Feeding. — Hunt says: "The 
total amount of digestible nutrients in loo pounds of 
clover hay is almost identical with that of loo pounds 
of timothy hay. The Pennsylvania station has shown 
that the full value, — i. e., the total energy that can be 
set free in the body of a steer, is nearly the same in 
both kinds of hay. The net available energy, however, 
of clover hay when fed to a steer as a maintenance ration 
is found to be considerably less than that of timothy hay. 
On the other hand, clover hay furnishes more than three 
times as large a proportion of proteids as does timothy 
hay. The practical application of these experiments 
would seem to be that, for the purpose of balancing the 
ration, clover hay has a high feeding value for growing 
or milking ruminants; but where the ration has already 
sufficient protein for the needs of the animal, clover hay 



SUMMARY OF RED CLOVER 165 

is not superior, and is perhaps inferior to timothy hay in 
feeding value." 

SUMMARY OF RED CLOVER. 

Red clover has done more than any other legume to 
benefit American agriculture. It is best adapted to the 
needs of the American farmer because it is so quickly 
and easily established, and commonly so hardy and 
thrifty. It is adapted to all of Canada, and the United 
States north of the Gulf States and east of the Missouri 
River. If one finds one's soil responding better to alsike 
one should try the effect of drainage and good liming, 
preferably with carbonate of lime (ground limestone), 
which will in most instances make red clover succeed, 
especially if one has added phosphorus and vegetable 
matter to the soil. Red clover is a better plant than al- 
sike clover because it is larger-growing and deeper-rooted 
and more abundantly supplied with nitrogen-securing bac- 
teria. It is not so good a plant as alfalfa where alfalfa 
may be grown, because alfalfa gives more and better 
forage and also enriches the soil more rapidly than does 
red clover. There are degrees in good farming. Alsike 
clover-growing might be called the first degree, red clover 
comes with the second degree and alfalfa with the third 
and highest degree. It is nearly true that any soil that 
will grow red clover will also grow alfalfa, if it is made 
a little drier by tiles, a little richer in carbonate of lime 
and phosphorus and given a little more humus. While 
one is learning to do the best thing one should keep one's 
red clover and strive to make it as strong as possible. 



166 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

Diseases of Red Clover. — "Clover-sick" lands in Eu- 
rope are found sometimes to be afflicted with a fungus 
which, attacking the clover, is sufficient to destroy it. I 
have not know^n of the presence of this disease in America. 
Clover-sick lands in America are commonly deficient only 
in lime, phosphorus and vegetable matter, or else are 
poorly drained, though I have known lands to refuse to 
grow the plant till potassium had been applied. Thorne 
found at the Ohio Experiment Station that liming cured 
soils that would not grow red clover. In Tennessee is 
found anthracnose attacking red clover and alfalfa, but 
doing no damage to alsike clover. Anthracnose is a 
fungus attacking stems and leaves and causing "clover- 
wilt." Diligent search revealed growing in the state 
many immune plants which were collected in nursery and 
propagated at the Tennessee station, from wdiich it is 
hoped enough seed may be secured to restore the clover- 
fields of the state. In the meantime, alsike clover is being 
sown as a substitute for the familiar red, in w^hich use it 
is fairly successful. 

Alsike Clover (Trifolium hybridum). — Alsike clover 
has a curious resemblance to both red and little white 
clovers, and is sometimes called a, hybrid, though there is 
no proof that it is so. It has in part the recumbent habit 
of growth of little white clover, but is much larger and 
makes more hay. It is a smaller-growing species than 
red clover and yet it will in certain soils make more hay. 
It is able to endure wetter soils than red clover, and is not 
so hungry for lime. Thus it finds certain ranges of soil 
and situations on which it is a better clover than any 



GRASS MIXTURES WITH CLOVER 167 

other. In Europe it is esteemed a perennial. In our 
own North and East it is said to be nearly a perennial. In 
Ohio and southward it is, however, much shorter-lived. I 
do not think it worth planting where red clover or alfalfa 
thrives, except in mixtures where it seems to add to the 
weight and quality of the hay. Alsike clover feeds bees, 
which red clover does not usually, and it makes delicious 
honey. It makes a good seed crop, and the seed is so 
small that one may sow less than half the amount that 
one would sow of red clover. The seed is in the first 
crop, though it may be pastured for a time in spring. It 
is better to sow alsike clover with timothy, as it is then 
less apt to go down and be hard to mow. A good mix- 
ture is timothy 15 pounds, red clover 6, and alsike clover 
4 pounds w^hen cut for hay. A favorite mixture, and one 
in general practice in middle Tennessee, is 5 pounds or- 
chard grass, 5 pounds meadow oatgrass, 4 pounds redtop, 
and 4 pounds alsike. 

Alsike clover has come into disrepute in certain sec- 
tions because horses and mules pastured on it exclusively 
have been troubled by eruptions of the skin. Unless the 
vital organs are affected, animals recover all right on be- 
ing removed from such pasture. This has affected more 
animals which have white feet or noses. The cause of 
this malady is obscure, and so far as observed no cases 
have originated in pastures having grasses mixed with 
clover. I have not heard of animals being affected by 
eating the hay; the disease originates in pastures. 

Crimson Clover {TrifoUnin incarnahim) . — This clover 
is often called scarlet clover or carnation clover, and in 



168 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

England tri folium. There are two varieties: one with 
crimson and the other with white flowers. There are in 
France recognized a number of minor varieties differing 
chiefly in their time of maturing. A field of crimson 
clover in bloom is a sight not soon to be forgotten. The 
bloom is more brilliant than that of any other plant of 
our fields or meadows. The clover is well w^orth growing 
as an ornamental in the flower bed if there is not room 
for it in the meadow. I recall vividly the crimson patches 
on the landscapes of England and France, more especially 
the latter. In France it seems the custom to sow clovers 
in mixtures. I have seen crimson clover sown with red 
clover and rye grass, all mown off together and fed to 
dairy cows. In England it is used as a soiling crop for 
lambs that are fitted for the shows, and it is a gaudy sight 
to see at the showyard the great lusty lambs, nicely col- 
ored as to fleece, standing at racks filled with crimson 
clover, very crimson as to top and very darkly, richly 
green as to leaf. I think the clover is sometimes fed off 
there in hurdles as well. Crimson clover is strictly an 
annual, living less than one year. Commonly the seed 
falls to the ground in June, germinating in July or Aug- 
ust. The plant makes growth during the cool weather 
or fall, and is so resistant to cold that it is green nearly 
all winter. With the first warm days of spring it is up 
and doing; it heads in May, perfects seed and dies. 

Where Is Crimson Clover of Use? — Crimson clover is 
a plant for mild climates. It can not endure extreme 
frost. It has failed with me more often than it has 
succeeded in central Ohio. North of me along Lake 



WHERE CRIMSON CLOVER THRIVES 169 

Erie it has succeeded with the orchardists, I think, about 
two years out of four. It is of no use in the cornbelt 
except in very favoring years, which is unfortunate, as 
it would be the best sort of legume for keeping our nitro- 
gen, and enable us to follow corn with corn much more 
than we can now safely do. The home of crimson clover 
in America seems to be limited to Long Island, New Jer- 
sey, Delaware, eastern Virginia, the Carolinas and all 
the Gulf States. It is in use chiefly in New Jersey, Dela- 
ware and Virginia. There it is commonly sown after to- 
matoes or other truck crops, or in the corn at the time 
of last cultivation. In Maryland it grows in very poor, 
sandy soils deficient in lime, which it does not seem to 
need as much as do most clovers. I have seen it green 
all winter, even with a good many hard frosts and some 
freezing weather. It responds to fertilizers admirably, 
and in these poor sandy soils it is a godsend, accumu- 
lating nitrogen and humus, using the little dole of com- 
mercial fertilizer thrown in it in a most economical man- 
ner and returning with prodigious liberality. It is a 
plant for poor soils and mild climates. Nevertheless, it 
yields most on good soils, which it makes still better. 

Steadily the region of crimson clover's domain en- 
larges as men know how to use it and soils become in- 
oculated for it. After testing every one of the common 
clovers in Louisiana, I am convinced that crimson clover 
has more merit than any other for a winter-growing 
catch-crop, though I liked well there the mixture of 
crimson clover, bur clover and red clover. This use 
convinced me that the whole South should take up crim- 
son clover and use it after corn and cotton as a catch- 



170 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

crop; it should, indeed, sow fields of it especially for 
its soil-building effect, and to use as forage for winter 
grazing w^ith pigs, calves and sheep. It should grow its 
own seed, which could easily be done, and learn to inocu- 
late new soils, for this is one of the clovers that resents 
a raw, uninoculated soil. There are many legumes that 
will help the South, and this, it seems to me, is chief of 
them all at present, since it is tolerant of poor soils, and, 
growing during southern winters, would put the land to 
double use, besides stopping the waste of nitrogen from 
leaching of winter rains. The chief reason why crimson 
clover has not met with more favor in the South is that 
commonly it has been sown on uninoculated soil. An- 
other difficulty is the dry weather in the fall that some- 
times interferes with getting a stand, especially on clay 
or buckshot soils. Crimson clover grows commonly 2' 
or more high, and stands erect w^ith less tendency than 
red clover to lodge. It makes much less weight of hay 
than one is led to expect from seeing it grow. It is 
better fed green than made into hay. If fed after the 
heads begin to ripen, there is danger of death to cattle 
and horses from the forming of "hair balls" in their 
stomachs. While crimson clover makes good forage and 
is relished by all classes of animals, its chief worth is as 
a soil-renovating plant. It is sown in orchards to be 
turned under, after truck crops come off the land, or 
after corn or cotton. In Virginia it is commonly used 
as a forerunner of alfalfa. When thus used it is turned 
under w^hen in full bloom, and the land afterward given 
good culture for some weeks till late July or early 
August, when the alfalfa seed is sown. It is very notice- 



EFFECTS OF CRIMSON CLOVER 171 

able that when one is endeavoring to bring up poor soils 
by the use of crimson clover, the more one helps the 
clover by means of manures the more the clover in turn 
is able to help the land. Thus it pays well to fertilize 
liberally when the clover is sown, choosing a fertilizer 
rich in phosphorus, and for some soils potassium. Crim- 
son clover is !ess insistent than some clovers on lime in 
the soil, though it thrives best when the land is fairly 
sweet. 

Bees revel in crimson clover, which is a good point. It 
makes seed very abundantly and the seed is easily threshed 
by either machine or hand. Crimson clover seed must be 
harvested at night or very early in the morning. Not a 
few southern farmers take squares of canvas to the field, 
and having the clover cut and dry, flail out the seed. This 
may leave the seed in the chaff, but for home sowing 
this is no objection ; in truth, some believe it grows more 
surely in that condition. It may yield 5 to lo bushels 
of seed to the acre. The yield of green forage from 
crimson clover may easily reach 10 tons to the acre. As 
a gatherer of fertility it may yield to the soil as much as 
200 pounds to the acre of nitrogen, besides considerable 
good grazing, and all, practically, for the cost of seed- 
ing, since it grows mainly during the time between crops. 
I suggest to farmers living south of the Ohio River the 
establishing of small fields of crimson clover, if no more 
than plats in the gardens, whence can be taken soil to 
inoculate larger fields. For the small plat one can doubt- 
less secure inoculated earth from experiment stations. 

Sowing Crimson Clover. — Crimson clover seed is large 
and commonly of good quality. It is not often adulter- 



172 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

ated. It can not be sown in the spring. July, August, 
September or October are the months of sowing, depend- 
ing on location; the later months are best for the Gulf 
States. 

Quantity of Seed to Soza. — From lo to 20 pounds to 
the acre are sown. It is commonly sown alone. I have 
had good results mixing it with other clovers in Louisi- 
ana, though the crimson clover outgrew its rivals at 
first. The chief difficulty is to get the plants started at 
this dry time of year. It is not always safe to sow in 
the dust, since there may come a very slight rain that 
will sprout the seed without sustaining it. Besides sow- 
ing as a catch-crop in the standing corn, it may be sown 
alone on fields especially prepared for it. Thus sown 
in Louisiana we had best success, and it made us good 
pasturage for hogs. It may be mixed with rape seed, 
one pound of the latter to five of crimson clover, for hog 
pasture. One must not graze closely if one wishes to 
get the greatest good from the plant. 

Crimson Clover as a Regenerator. — I feel that I can 
not urge too strongly the importance of this legume to 
the South. It comes at a time when fields are commonly 
idle, wasting and unlovely. It covers them over with 
a mantle of green. It stores them with fertility, adds 
humus and makes them m.ellow. It affords feed for 
plantation stock, commonly half-famished for something 
green and succulent, and is good for fowls and bees. 
The farmer once having his fields inoculated and a start 
of the clover, is able to save his own seed and have 
enough for himself and his neighbors. Crimson clover 
rightly used will lay the foundation for better things. 



CRIMSON CLOVER AND PEAS 173 

If the southern farmer is ready for no more, let him 
sow a single pound of seed in some good spot of well- 
prepared soil, nourish it and sow again the succeeding 
_vear, and, continually, till the inoculation is complete. 
From that little spot may radiate lovely fields in every 
direction ; it may become the center of a new agriculture. 
Crimson Clover and Cozvpeas Together. — The ''South- 
ern Farm Gazette" contains the subjoined helpful letter 
written by W. C. Crook, Henderson County, Tenn. : 

"We sow crimson clover alone in our corn fields at last plow- 
ing, at the rate of IS to 17 pounds of seed per acre. From this 
sowing we nearly always get a splendid winter crop for our 
soil. But after careful experimenting we have almost abandoned 
sowing it alone at the last plowing of corn. We found by sowing 
it with cowpeas that, in case clover failed, we still had one legumi- 
nous crop and could follow with rye just the same. But when 
sown with peas we have but few failures with the clover. It is 
greatly shaded by the peas and thus protected while young from 
the hot sun and parching winds. The decaying peavines also pro- 
tect and nourish the clover through the winter season. We also 
sow crimson clover along after wheat and oat harvest and get fine 
results. But here, as in our corn land, we get best results when 
sown with peas. By so sowing we can cut the peas for hay and 
still have the clover for a second hay crop, or to be turned down 
for green manure. We do the latter, as we get all the hay we can 
use from cowpeas, and it is a better grade of hay. The cowpea hay 
is not so good when sown with clover, as one must not sow over 
Y^ bushel of pea seed per acre. Therefore the hay is coarse. 

"We find it pays to give land intended for peas and crimson 
clover a top dressing of 250 to 300 pounds phosphoric acid per acre. 
By doing this we are able to take very thin land and get a heavy 
crop of both peas and clover. We have made many experimental 
tests to see the effects of turning in a good growth of peas and clo- 
ver ; and always found the following crop to withstand a drouth 
splendidly, make a very rapid growth, and yield from 200 to 400 
more pounds of seed cotton to the acre. In one test we found the 
wheat yield increased 7% bushels, and on another the corn yield 



174 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

was increased 11 bushels per acre, where a growth of this kind had 
been turned down. We made a test with potatoes where a rank 
growth of crimson clover and decaying peavines had been turned, 
and found that we had not only gotten 18 bushels more potatoes 
per acre, but they were much smoother, more uniform, and freer 
from scab also." 

Bur Clovers. — There are a good many species of bur 
clover that have more or less value. Among those most 
commonly seen are Medicago maculata and M. denticii- 
lafa. These annual wild clovers were found originally in 
southern Europe, then naturalized in California, later 
coming into more or less use in our southern states. In 
California bur clover in the winter makes a lovely sight, 
much resembling our white clover, only of more robust 
growth. Animals eat it after they become accustomed 
to it, though it is not at first relished. After the forage 
is dry it seems better liked. In California it dries up 
after the rains cease, and remains dry and yellow till 
eaten during the long, dry summer. After it is eaten 
the earth is found covered with the burry pods, which 
are greedily licked up by cattle and sheep. The burs 
of some species become entangled in the wool of sheep 
and are more or less troublesome. Bur clovers are rela- 
tives of alfalfa, and carry the same bacteria. They enrich 
land on which they grow, as do all clovers, and, as they 
grow in winter, have distinct value. Growing with Ber- 
muda grass it is objected that animals do not eat the 
clovers, and they tend to make too rank growth and to 
smother out the grass in patches. In Louisiana I have 
seen bur clover growing luxuriantly along the Missis- 
sippi River, and have tried to establish it by sowing the 
seed. It seems less easy to establish than crimson clover, 



THE MERITS OF BUR CLOVER 175 

and of less value, on the whole, though it has the merit 
of reseeding itself, once established. I approve of bur 
clover, as it is a nutritious, soil-enriching legume, and ad- 
vise .southern farmers to make effort to establish it along 
roadsides and in pastures, which it would beautify and 
enrich. It seems to like a soil rich in lime, and to need 
inoculation. 

There is a new bur clover, Medicago ohiciilata, that 
makes a most astonishingly vigorous growth in California, 
affording of dry forage as much as 4 or more tons to 
the acre, and leaving when raked away many bushels 
of seed on the earth. This clover is said to be some- 
what tender, but it should thrive in southern Texas and 
the Gulf States. In California this bur clover w^ould af- 
ford 20 times the amount of summer feed that is now 
had from native wild growth, and is well worth test- 
ing. It may need to have stock kept off it till it has 
nearly matured, in which case one could have a fenced 
pasture of Medicago obiculata and another pasture of 
native wild oats and smaller bur clover. Seed of all 
these bur clovers is obtained by removing the vines and 
sweeping the seed from the dry ground with wire brooms. 
None of them is of any use in the northern states, but 
all have their uses in the South and should be taught 
to grow in pasture and as catch-crops. One of the first 
men to call attention to the value of bur clover was Dr. 
Tait Butler, then of North Carolina, now editor of the 
"Southern Farm Gazette," from which valuable southern 
farm journal I quote: 

"The chief use of bur clover is as a clover crop during the win- 
ter and spring, to gather nitrogen for soil improvement, and as an 



176 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

early pasture. It is an annual and must be sown every year or 
sufficient seed allowed to ripen to re-seed itself. It makes an early 
spring growth and sufficient seed will ripen from May 1 to May 20, 
according to location, to re-seed the land. In two years' experi- 
ments on one of the test farms of the North Carolina State De- 
partment of Agriculture bur clover produced sufficient growth of 
hay to yield an average of $28.27 worth of nitrogen per acre at 
current prices in mixed commercial fertilizers. On two plats fer- 
tilized with the same quantities of phosphoric acid and potash, but 
the one having grown a crop of bur clover and the other having 
been fertilized with 120 pounds of cottonseed-meal, the bur clover 
plot gave at the rate of 400 pounds more seed cotton per acre. At 
4 cents a pound for seed cotton this would give an increased profit 
of $16 per acre. The increased cost of picking, and the like, would 
be covered by the 120 pounds of cottonseed meal used on the other 
plot, which would leave a net profit of $16 for the crop of bur clo- 
ver. That a heavy crop of bur clover was grown is shown by the 
fact that nearly three tons of hay were obtained as an average of 
two years' trials on this farm, but half that growth would yield a 
profit sufficient to more than justify the use of this plant as a win- 
ter cover crop on the cotton fields. 

"Its chief value as a pasture crop is in the fact that it afifords 
pasture during February and March when there is a scarcity of 
green feed. While it is a legume, and rich in protein, it is not read- 
ily eaten by stock except when other more palatable green feed is 
not obtainable. It grows on a great variety of soils and will, un- 
der proper conditions, probably do well practically throughout our 
entire territory. Bur clover may be sown at the last working of 
the corn or cotton crop. In fact, that is probably the best time to 
sow it if seed in the bur is used instead of clean seed. It takes 
the burs some time to rot and unless sown in July or August a 
stand is not so certain. If clean seed are used, later sowing may 
be advisable. The seed may be sown broadcast and lightly covered 
with a cultivator at the last working. When level cultivation is 
practiced this will be found satisfactory, but if the turn plow is 
used in cultivating, the seed may be covered too deeply unless a 
very large quantity is used. After the seed burs ripen they fall to 
the ground and are usually swept up in gathering the seed. In this 
way more or less soil and trash are gathered with the seed burs 
and sufficient of the germs or bacteria usually adhere to the burs 



SWEET CLOVER OR MELILOTUS 177 

to inoculate a fresh soil if a liberal quantity of seed be used — about 
two bushels to the acre. If clean seed are used, it will be necessary 
to inoculate the soil in some way if bur clover has not been recent- 
ly grown successfully on this soil, and the most satisfactory way to 
inoculate — as for any of the legumes — is to obtain a few hundred 
pounds of soil for each acre, from a field that has produced a good 
crop of this clover. Even with the seed sown in the burs, complete 
and satisfactory inoculation is not usual the first year, but the sec- 
ond year it usually becomes sufficient. It is usually claimed that 
soil that has grown alfalfa or melilotus successfully is inoculated 
for bur clover. 

"Many failures to obtain a stand of this plant are recorded and 
in the opinion of the writer they are most often due to sowing too 
late, when the seed are in the burs, and to the lack of inoculation. 
There is probably no winter cover crop from which the best re- 
sults can be obtained in time to prepare the land again for cotton. 
For this reason, as well as for many others, some other crop should 
follow the cotton and bur clover. If corn be planted after the bur 
clover, ample time exists for the ripening of the clover, the prop- 
er preparation of the land and the growth of the corn crop. As 
soon as enough of the bur clover has ripened to insure re-seeding 
of the land — May 1 to 20 — the land should be well broken, thor- 
oughly harrowed and the corn planted. We advise those who are 
thinking of trying bur clover for the first time, to sow only a 
small area, say one acre. Procure seed in the burs and also, if 
practicable, 200 to 500 pounds of soil from a field where the crop 
is now growing well. Sow the latter part of July or in August, 
and after a success has been achieved on one acre the seed and the 
inoculated soil are at hand for sowing several acres if desired. As 
a cover crop and soil improver bur clover is worth much more 
than it will cost to grow it, but get your soil inoculated and learn 
how to handle it before you try it on a large scale." 

Szveet Clover (Mclilottis alba, M. officinalis). — This 

plant resembles alfalfa, and Is closely related to it. When 

young it is hard to distinguish from alfalfa unless one 

tastes the stem or leaves, when its characteristic bitter 

taste is discovered. It has also a distinct odor that gives 

it its name "sweet clover," and this odor it retains when 



178 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

made into hay. There are two species, white and yellow. 
The yellow-blooming variety (M. oificinalis) is smaller 
and of less value than the white-blooming one, though 
it lacks the troublesome coarseness of its relative, M. alba. 
Sweet clover is a biennial, starting one year and making 
no attempt to bloom, blooming the second year and dy- 
ing. Seed may drop so that there will be a continuous 
growth on the land, and sometimes men sow the seed for 
two years in succession so as to have it in continuous 
growth. Of few plants has more been said for and 
against. Some states have proscribed it as a noxious 
weed ; others have expressly stated that it was not a weed 
at all. Men have, without reason, feared it and cursed 
it; others have with care established it and are using 
it as a bee pasture and as forage, both green and dry, 
for cattle, sheep and sw^ine. Sweet clover has a mar- 
velous luxuriance of growth. I have seen it full 8' high, 
and that on very hard soi'l, but rich in carbonate of 
lime and phosphorus. It carries the same bacteria as 
alfalfa, and enriches soils in the same manner. It is 
the most vigorous soil-enricher of any of the clovers 
and will do what the others will not, that is, begin on 
very poor worn soils. It luxuriates on poor hillsides and 
in time covers them over with good grasses. It grows 
on old, worn fields in the South and is grazed eagerly 
by lambs, ewes, pigs and calves. It is occasionally made 
into hay, and the Wyoming Experiment Station has 
shown that lambs fed on this hay make as much gain 
as on alfalfa, or even a little more. It is the best bee 
pasture extant, and it will grow on soils too hard and 
too deficient in humus for alfalfa. After growing for 



THE VALUE OF SWEET CLOVER 



179 



a time the land will grow the better legume. All in 
all, there is hardly a better legume than sweet clover, 
and none that can fill its place. Withal, it has not fulfilled 




Sweet Clover. 



Roots of Red Clover showing nodules. 



the hopes of its friends. It seems a capricious plant. 
Growing luxuriantly on the roadsides or along railway 
embankments, it becomes a sickly, insignificant thing 
sown on cultivated fields. The truth is that sweet clayer 



180 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

is a lime-loving plant. It will grow anywhere that the 
soil is filled with carbonate of lime; rich or poor, swxet 
clover will enrich a lime soil. It can not be established 
on a soil deficient in lime. It must be inoculated in or- 
der to thrive anywhere, but inoculation in right soils 
comes easily and soon, whether artificially applied or not. 
It is a splendid forager for food and if it has its lime- 
hunger satisfied is not exacting in other things, and is, 
indeed, far less exacting than any other legume that I 
know. 

Sweet Clover Nozvhere a Pest. — I have never seen 
sweet clover do injury to any cultivated crop. In the 
meadow it disappears completely under ordinary mow- 
ings, since it can not seed. In pastures it seldom comes, 
since animals graze it when young and prevent its seed- 
ing. Along ditches, roadsides and in waste ground it 
may grow thick and rank, but there it is better than 
weeds since it feeds the bees and is beautiful when young. 
Men unused to it are sometimes annoyed or frightened 
if it comes in their new-sown alfalfa meadows. Nearly 
all w^estern-grown alfalfa seed contains more or less sweet 
clover and few can distinguish between the seeds, nor is 
it possible to separate them. The melilotus wdll do no 
harm in alfalfa and will disappear in two years of ordi- 
nary use of an alfalfa meadow. 

The Use of Szveet Clover. — I have watched for years 
the steady spread of sweet clover over certain hiysides 
and mountainsides of Kentucky. When first I knew 
them they were washed, gullied and nearly barren. They 
are stony hillsides and contain much carbonate of lime. 
Now they carry thousands of fields and patches of sweet 



ESTABLISHING SWEET CLOVER 181 

clover and present a very beautiful appearance in spring 
and early summer. Sheep, pigs and cattle graze this 
melilotus and stock-buyers comment that they get their 
best lambs from these farms. Further, on these once 
bare hillsides, the bluegrasses are coming in, follow^ing 
in the wake of sweet clover. It is made into hay, and 
horses, cows and sheep eat it w^ith relish. It is neces- 
sary for animals to learn to eat the plant, and probably 
they would always prefer the other clovers, yet they 
thrive as well, apparently on the sweet clover as on 
any other forage. In the limestone soils of Alabama 
and Mississippi sweet clover is doing w^onders, and some 
farmers in those regions claim it to be more profitable 
than alfalfa. In Colorado and other western states it is 
being sown on very hard adobe soils to prepare them for 
alfalfa, the practice being to turn it under when at the 
height of its growth. It is found to have great power 
to mellow hard adobe soils. 

Establishing Szvcet Clover. — Only on soils too poor or 
wet for alfalfa would I suggest sowing sweet clover. The 
seed is sown in much the same manner as alfalfa — in the 
fall in southern climates and in the spring or summer 
at the North. The land should be well limed if it is at all 
lime-hungry. Carbonate of lime gives best results with 
sweet clover. What sweet clover especially does is to 
secure nitrogen from the air by means of its bacteria, 
and these live only in soils rich in lime. It must have 
inoculation or it is a poor, sickly thing. Inoculation 
can be had by sowing soil taken from a rank-growing 
sweet clover patch or from an established alfalfa field. 
Wherever nature has put lime in the soil or one can buy 



182 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

it, one can grow either sweet clover or alfalfa ; the sweet 
clover may very easily be a forerunner of the better le- 
gume. I am firmly convinced that there are millions 
of acres in the United States that would be far more 
profitable sown to sweet clover than they are today, for 
they would then be made ready for corn or alfalfa, and 
the sweet clover would yield honey, wool and meat, while 
doing its work of soil restoration. Especially has it im- 
mense value as a soil ameliorant. There are vast areas 
now being reclaimed by irrigation that have most diffi- 
cult soil, hard and clayey, difficult to irrigate and to till. 
These soils are rich in mineral elements of fertilization. 
They lack nitrogen and humus, something to open them 
and let in air and water. Sweet clover thrives on these 
hard, lime-impregnated lands and should there be grown. 
When it reaches full height it should be turned under,, 
Money could be made by saving a seed crop, too, as 
sweet clover seed sells for nearly as high a price as alfalfa 
seed. 

Yellow Trefoil (Medicago lupulina). — I would not 
mention this little clover only that it so often comes where 
it is not expected, and causes owners no end of wonder- 
ment. It is a small, creeping clover with a yellow bloom. 
It is harmless and makes good grazing, though not very 
much of it. In Europe, it is sometimes sown with intent. 
In America, it is gotten only as an adulterant with al- 
falfa or clover seed, chiefly with alfalfa. It may do much 
harm in alfalfa by crowding the better plant while it is 
young; otherwise it is not a weed, and the worst about 
it is that one is deceived when one buys it and is de- 
frauded. 



HAIRY VETCH DESCRIBED 183 

Hairy Vetch (Vicia znllosa). — There have been intro- 
duced into America many species and varieties of vetches. 
Some are sown in the spring and some in the fall. There 
is also much variation in the vetches themselves, that they 
might well be divided into varieties of greater or less 
merit, would anyone take the trouble. The spring-sown 
vetches are not adapted to our hot dry summers, and prac- 
tically the one species in cultivation in America is the 
hairy or winter vetch. Hairy vetch has several very strik- 
ingly good qualities. It is very hardy. It grows late in 
the fall and early in the spring. It is tolerant of poor 
soil and is especially adapted to soils deficient in lime 
and humus. It grows better in good soil and is grateful 
for being fed. It is a heavy carrier of root tubercles 
and these increase more during colder weather on vetches 
than on most legumes. It makes good forage that is rel- 
ished by all classes of animals. It gathers more nitrogen 
than anything else that can be sown for a winter-cover 
crop. It is adapted to all the South where it grows near- 
ly all winter and is hardy in New York. Hairy vetch is 
a slender, vine-like, trailing plant with pinnate leaves and 
tendrils on the ends of the leaf stems. Its blooms re- 
semble small purple or bluish peas, and later pea-like 
pods with small, round, black pea-shaped seeds. The 
vines may grow 4,6 or 8 ft. long, then recline on the 
ground, anless they find something up which to climb. 
It is useful to sow rye or wheat with vetches so that they 
may have support. In the north rye may be the better 
plant ; from Tennessee southward wheat is better. The 
mixture of vetch and wheat makes a prodigious amount 
of forage for spring cutting which may be used for soil- 



184 



MEADOWS AND PASTURES 




Hairy Vetch (Vicia villosa). 



ESTABLISHING VETCHES 185 

ing cows or other animals. I have seen astonishing 
growths of this plant in Oregon, Washington, Tennessee, 
Alabama, Mississippi and other states. It is not, so far 
as I have seen, regularly in use by farmers anywhere. 

The difficulties as to vetch are several. The seed is 
expensive, costing now (1910) 6 cents a pound, and it 
requires 70 to 75 pounds to the acre for a good seeding. 
Then the seed lies in the earth sometimes for a year or 
more and may come up in small grain and prove a trou- 
blesome weed, though it will not interfere with any cul- 
tivated crop. It must absolutely have inoculation or it 
makes very slender growth. I know of no legume de- 
pending more on its bacteria than the hairy vetch. In 
Louisiana I sowed vetches on sandy loam soil, well worn, 
with the result that few plants exceeded a foot in height, 
while a few plants accidentally inoculated made a growth 
of many times that. I should say from observation that 
on poor soils there would be more than 10 times the 
growth of hairy vetch where the soil is inoculated over 
where it is not. The Alabama station reported a growth 
of 232 pounds to the acre without inoculation and 2,540 
pounds with inoculation. 

In the South vetch may be sown on Bermuda grass 
sod, which may be disked or even plow^ed to give a seed- 
bed. It should, however, be grazed off close, or mown 
as soon as hot weather begins, otherwise its shade will 
destroy the grass. At the Cornell station in New York 
three months' growth of hairy vetch made 6,824 pounds 
of dry forage per acre containing 240 pounds of nitrogen, 
53 pounds of phosphoric acid and 52 pounds of potash, 
while during the same period cowpeas produced 2,262 



7 



186 



MEADOWS AND PASTURES 



pounds of forage per acre, containing 46, 23, and 19 
pounds respectively. It seems to me the one serious ob- 
stacle to cultivation of vetch is the cost of seed, and this 
the farmer could in a measure obviate by growing his 
own seed — a thing easily enough done. Vetches germi- 




Hairy Vetch. 



Cowpea. 



nate slowly and should be sown early — in northern lati- 
tudes in late July, in the South as late as October and in 
the Gulf States it may thrive sown in November, though 
earlier seeding is desirable if there is moisture sufficient 
to germinate it. Inoculation may be given by immers- 
ing the seed in very muddy water, made by stirring in- 



VETCH AND CRIMSON CLOVER 187 

fected earth from some inoculated vetch field into a buck- 
et of water. This will give a thin coating of mud on 
each seed and the inoculation will be found efficient. 
The seed should be sown at once without exposure to 
light. 

Vetch and Crimson Clover. — My friend, L. W. Lighty 
of Adams Co., Pa., a shrewd, practical Dutchman, has 
this to say in the ''National Stockman and Farmer" 
about the use of these two legumes in Pennsylvania : 

''Sow any time after the middle of July to the end of October. 
If you never grew vetch before it may not succeed so well the first 
year as it, like all legumes, does better on inoculated soil and the in- 
oculation comes from the growing of the plant. My preference is 
to sow a half-bushel of vetch and a bushel to a bushel and a half 
of rye to the acre. If 3'ou do not care to plow early in the spring, 
and the land is fairly fertile, a peck of vetch and three pecks of rye 
will make quite a mass of vegetable matter. I prefer heavy seed- 
ing so as to get a dense growth and prevent washing during win- 
ter and it also gives me more material to plow under early in the 
spring. Would it pay to sow vetch the last working of corn if the 
stubble is to be sowed to wheat? No, the growth of the vetch is 
best in cool weather, so a^ou would have but little growth, besides 
it would be hard to destroy all the vetch plants and they would be 
in your wheat like cockle, and almost impossible to separate if you 
would wish to sell the wheat. Vetch, like rye, may be a weed and 
you do not want it in your seed or selling wheat. Would not crim- 
son clover be preferable to vetch? It may be, in fact is, in some 
soils preferable to vetch. I note wherever there is a good propor- 
tion of sharp sand in the soil, crimson clover flourishes, but in the 
clayey or shaley soils, devoid of sand, crimson clover is an unsat- 
isfactory manurial crop because it thrives so poorly. Rye and 
vetch are generally preferable because they grow and thrive under 
the most adverse conditions. Being a sort of weed, they flourish 
in spite of neglect, do not winterkill, nor do insects disturb them. 
Crimson clover is delicate and wants things just so or it will quit. 
I prefer the robust, rough-and-ready plant that is there when I 
come to plow it under. If crimson clover succeeds on your soil 



188 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

SOW it, but rather than have the soil lie bare during winter, by all 
means sow rye and vetch. As a soiling crop this rye and vetch 
mixture is superior to the crimson clover." 

Japan Clover (Lespedeza striata). — Japan clover came 
to us probably in packing about tea chests or china ware 
in 1850. It spread rapidly over the South during the 
Civil War, and is now found nearly everywhere south of 
the Ohio River, especially on poor soils where bluegrass 
and other perennial grasses are not seen. It is most 
abundant and luxuriant in the Gulf States. It has an 
astonishing ability to grow on poor soils, yet makes most 
growth on rich soils. Ordinarily it is only 4" to 6" high ; 
in Mississippi and Louisiana on rich bottom lands it may 
be 2' or more high and make 3 or more tons of hay to 
the acre at one cutting. Japan clover is abundantly sup- 
plied with large, firm nodules and is an efficient nitrogen- 
gatherer, greatly enriching soils on which it grows. It is 
an annual clover and comes each year from seed. It seeds 
well, and, once established, is nearly permanent unless the 
land is cultivated. Animals can hardly graze it close 
enough to prevent its seeding, since when close-grazed it 
sends out, close to the earth, branches that bloom and 
bear seed. When undisturbed it has an erect growth, es- 
pecially when growing thick on rich soil. 

All animals relish Japan clover and thrive on it. It 
is invaluable as an admixture with Bermuda pasture. It 
is said to uproot broom sedge, though I doubt its ability 
to do this on ordinary soils. It is not insistent in demand- 
ing a good soil or a soil rich in lime ; in fact, it will grow 
on a greater variety of inferior soils than any other use- 
ful clover. Japan clover "comes of itself" on many soils, 



SEEDING LESPEDEZA 189 

yet it is being more and more sown with profit, especially 
along the rich alluvial lands of the lower reaches of the 
Mississippi River. It is not intolerant of occasional flood- 
ing of the ground so the water does not stand too long or 
become too deep, hence it is adapted to poorly-drained 
southern lands as well as to hillsides. I have seen it 
grow luxuriantly on hard subsoil along railways where 
every bit of the topsoil had been removed. Speaking for 
Oklahoma, John Fields remarks that it is not worth while 
sowing lespedeza where it does not come of itself; that 
it is not adapted to drouth conditions. In Louisiana it 
is often sown with winter oats, the oats being sown in 
the fall and the lespedeza in the spring. After the oats 
are taken off, the lespedeza uses the land effectually and 
makes a crop of hay in the fall. The seed is best sown 
on bare earth and either left uncovered, when it will be 
covered by the beating rains, or else lightly brushed in. 
It will not endure much earth upon it. It may be sown at 
any time in spring or late winter. 

Quantity of Seed to Sow. — Ordinarily the seed is sold 
in the pod and a half bushel or more is sown to the acre. 
If one gets at first a thin stand of lespedeza, one may 
hope that the second year it will have thickened by its 
own self-sown seed. In mowing lespedeza for hay, one 
must use caution or one will lose the stand. AVhen it 
grows thick and tall there is danger that the mower may 
cut off all the bloom and seed. Some growers remove 
two or three sections from their mower knives so that 
strips are left uncut for the purpose of maturing seed. 
Lespedeza hay is richer in fat than alfalfa and compares 
well with it in all points. It is probably a more valuable 



190 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

hay. It is highly prized wherever it has been fed. Many 
old abandoned cotton plantations since the advent of the 
boll weevil have been sown in part to lespedeza with 
first-rate profit. It is common to mow it off early in the 
summer to remove the weeds and wild growths so that 
the lespedeza hay may be nearly pure. 

After studying the problem of live stock production in 
the Gulf States for several years, I am convinced that 
this clover should be the first to be sown. It has not as 
high value, acre for acre, as vetches or alfalfa; it will 
not grow to add fertility in frosty weather; in fact, it is 
a very tender annual, but it is so humble, so little insist- 
ent on good treatment, that one can take an old field too 
poor and undrained for good farming, plow lightly, level 
off, and sow to lespedeza, and presto ! one's land is occu- 
pied, at work, and getting richer even if slowly, will sup- 
port stock, and more than hold its own till one can get 
ready to take it seriously in hand with drains, deep plow- 
ing and fertilization preparatory to growing the larger 
legumes or corn. On the richer parts of his land he can 
grow from i to 4 tons to the acre of prime, nutritious 
hay if he feeds it, and bringing a good price if he sells 
it. 

Sainfoin (Esparcette) and French Clover (Onobrychis 
sativa). — I have never seen a successful field of this beau- 
tiful and valuable clover in America. In France it is 
much used both in mixtures with alfalfa (lucerne) and 
other clovers, and sown alone. On the best farms near 
Paris it is nearly always a part of the composition of the 
meadow. In England it is highly esteemed for dry, cal- 
careous soils. It is somewhat slow to establish but when 



TRIALS WITH SAINFOIN 191 

it is developed it is very productive and the hay is of su- 
perior quahty. It hkes dry, calcareous soils which it is 
said to enrich remarkably. It seems altogether unrea- 
sonable to me that it should not find somewhere in Amer- 
ica a congenial soil and climate. I have tried it in Utah 
with only moderate success. I suggest that probably this 
clover is only another instance of the necessity of inoc- 
ulation. True, most soils in America are lime-deficient, 
yet there are other soils in the West and Southwest that 
have a considerable excess of lime in their composition 
and are w^ell drained. I have seen soils in Colorado, New 
Mexico and Texas with from 4 per cent to 25 per cent of 
carbonate of lime in their composition, surely enough to 
satisfy even sainfoin. It is not worth while for the farm- 
er to work with sainfoin before his experiment station 
has shown him how to grow it, though I assuredly look 
for it to come into use in America some day. There are 
hills of limestone gravel in northern Illinois and south- 
ern Wisconsin that should take it; there are limestone 
hills in Kentucky now growing sweet clover that might 
take it, and then the vast areas of lime made soils of the 
Southwest. I suggest to directors of experiment stations 
that they secure from some source, perhaps from the 
farms of France, soil in which good sainfoin is now grow- 
ing, choose a dry plot of land, lime it very heavily with 
carbonate of lime, and make serious effort to learn what 
inoculated sainfoin will do in America. 

Quantity of Seed to Sozv. — In Europe it is common to 
sow about 60 to 80 pounds of tmhulled seed to the acre. 
Clovers or alfalfa are sometimes sown with the sainfoin. 
The seed can not push up through any great depth of 



lyZ MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

earth, so the seedbed must be fine and level so that the 
seeds may be put in at a uniform depth of about i" or a 
little less. It is sown in spring. In Europe are fields 20 
years old in productive condition. It endures drouth 
well and has enriched many poor, half-barren, hilly, cal- 
careous lands of Europe. I venture here to prophesy that 
we shall learn to use this splendid clover some day in 
parts of America and that it w^ill do us great good. I 
would never sow it without inoculation, and at this writ- 
ing that is difficult to secure. 

Field Pea (Pisum sativum var. arvense). — Field peas 
must have mention because they are of importance in 
Canada, Michigan, Wisconsin, New England and north- 
ern New York and in high altitudes of the western moun- 
tains. They are a close relative of the common garden 
pea, a mere variety, more resistant to cold and hardier 
to endure field conditions. They produce smaller peas 
than the garden sorts, and are smooth, while garden peas 
are commonly wrinkled. The growth of vine is remark- 
able, the Golden Vine variety having a length often ex- 
ceeding 10'. As the vines get older the leaves drop and 
the stems become bare. The Utah station reports the 
greatest yield of both green forage and dry matter when 
the plants were in bloom, water-free substance, 4,997 
pounds to the acre. Field peas are commonly grown for 
soiling purposes, mixed with oats. They grow best in 
cool weather and should be sown as early as possible in 
spring. In some soils they may, indeed, be sown very 
late in the fall, just as winter sets in, and they will lie 
dormant till early spring and then grow. Because sandy 
soils are first dry and warm in spring, field peas are com- 
monly found to thrive best there. They like calcareous 



CANADA FIELD PEAS 



193 




Canada Pea. 



194 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

soils or soils having been well limed. They need the right 
bacteria in the soil to cause nodulation of their roots, but 
commonly this is naturally present. Any soil that grows 
common garden peas well will inoculate field peas. They 
should be sown deeply, on deeply-plowed land. Often 
they are covered with the plow or drilled in very deep. 
In the Gulf States they should be sown in November; 
they will often make growth in mild winters. 

Quantity of Seed to Sow. — From i to 3 bushels to the 
acre are sown. When in drills, 2 bushels will be found 
sufficient seed. Wheat is, in the South, a better crop to 
sow with peas than oats, the standby of the North. Peas 
have considerable power to enrich soils, as was shown by 
their behavior in the San Luis Valley of Colorado. Lands 
there long devoted to wheat ceased to produce well and 
were sown to field peas, the seed coming first from the 
Mexicans. The peas throve and were either grazed off 
by sheep and pigs or mown and fed in corrals in winter. 
Afterward an astonishing rejuvenation of the soil was 
observed. The peas also proved very profitable as fat- 
tening feed for lambs, sheep, cattle and pigs. The 
altitude there is about 7,000 feet. Irrigation furnishes 
a soil always moist and the climate is cool with especially 
cool nights. There are other valleys in the Rocky Moun- 
tains too high for alfalfa and cool enough for peas, which 
do not resent an occasional light frost. The dry winters 
usual to those regions permit the feeding off of the peas 
with very slight expense, arid the manure made is dropped 
on the land. 

In the cornbelt region peas are little used, and in cen- 
tral Ohio they have with me proved less profitable than 



COWPEAS DESCRIBED 



195 



other forage crops. I 
have confidence in 
them for the North, 
the mountains, and 
the South where there 
is warmth enough for 
them to grow the 
winter long. 

Cowpca. — The cow- 
pea, called appropri- 
ately in Europe the 
China bean (Vigna 
sinensis or Vigna caf- 
jang) , is not properly 
speaking a pea, but 
resembles more the 
garden bean. It is an 
annual plant of great 
importance in the 
South, and, though 
not properly making 
either meadow or pas- 
ture, must have brief 
mention here. The 
strong points of the 
cowpea are that it will 
grow on very poor 
soil, and that it is 
very soon inoculated 
b y natural means, 




Cowpea plants with roots 41" long, 



196 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

though inoculation may come sparingly the first year. It 
enriches soils, as do all legumes, but for enriching quite 
poor soils it is perhaps better than almost any other. It 
makes good forage somewhat difficult to cure into hay. 
The seeds are good food for man or beast. It is not in- 
sistent on the soil being sweet, as are most legumes, but 
it will not grow in wet soil. The richer the soil is in min- 
eral elements the better the growth of peas. It gathers 
sufficient nitrogen from the air by the aid of its root nod- 
ules and bacteria, but must have phosphorus and perhaps 
potassium fed it, the latter being most commonly needed 
on sandy soils. There are very many varieties of cow- 
peas; among the most common in use are Whippoorwill 
and Unknown used in the South, and Black, a good va- 
riety for the North, though it may not mature seeds there. 
The Iron pea is immune to the cowpea wilt, so it has 
value in regions subject to that disease. There is also a 
wild cowpea growing in Louisiana that perpetuates it- 
self from year to year and makes much forage. The 
northern limit of profitable cultivation of the cowpea is 
probably the same as the limit of the larger dent va- 
rieties of corn, though it can be grown much farther 
north and will do fairly well. As cowpeas love sun and 
warm soil, it is not well to plant them until the earth is 
warm, say lo days or two weeks after the usual corn- 
planting time. The lightest frost is fatal to the cowpea. 

Method of Seeding Cozupeas. — To secure a good crop 
of peas one should plow and prepare the land well. The 
seed is better sown in drills 30" or more apart, and culti- 
vated once or twice. Two or three pecks of seed will 
sow an acre in drills. A larger amount of seed is com- 



MAKING COWPEA HAY 



197 



monly secured when planted in drills, but for hay it is 
common to sow broadcast and cover by disking or with 
shallow plowing. Thus sown, a bushel or more of seed 
is required if the crop is to be mown off for hay. The 




A Rack for Curing Cowpea Hay. 

cultivation sliDuld leave the land as level as is conveni- 
ent. Since cowpeas are weak-stemmed plants, it is desir- 
able to plant something with them that will hold them up. 
Soybeans planted thin are used for this purpose, as also 
is sorghum. The latter makes good growth with cow- 



198 



MEADOWS AND PASTURES 



peas and together they make much good forage, though 
it is hard to cure. 

Making Cozvpea Hay. — There is no easy way of mak- 
ing cowpea hay. The Tennessee station uses frames 
made of four upright timbers about 9' long, bolted to- 




Cowpea Hay Cocked Over a Rack. 

gether at the top and spread below like a tripod with 
cross pieces that hold the vines off the ground. On these 
frames green forage can be cured in large cocks of maybe 
500 pounds weight. In Bulletin No. 40 of the Mississippi 
station is given an account of how to cure cowpea hay. 



MAKING COWPEA HAY 



199 



The mower is started in the morning as soon as the dew 
is off, and run till noon. As soon as the top of the vine 
is well wilted it is run over with a tedder. When the 
crop is very heavy, the tedder is used a second time. 
Vines that have been cut in the morning and teddered in 



^r jJ 


^ 






' Miti ^T"T~'''*tB» 






: ■■■- 'i 




1 - ~ \ ; 

1 ■'■■ 




m 


^F~~^~^ ■ ~~~^;;l 


• ■ >■-- - 




" ■ . <■ .■■-■■■ «9-Xi- 


^/^iJJ--- .,>"4.^ ^'<f>:^ 


^■..". - 



Cowpea Hay Rack Ready for Moving'. 

the afternoon are usually dry enough to put in small 
cocks the next afternoon, and if the weather promises fa- 
vorable they are alloAved to remain in the cocks for two 
or three days before they are hauled to the barn. If it 
should rain before the vines are put in cocks they are not 



200 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

touched until the surface is well dried, and are then ted- 
dered as though freshly cut. We find the only safe plan is 
to put the vines in a stack covered with straw for a few 
weeks, or, still better, in the barn, where they should not 
be piled too deep. After a month the hay may be baled 
with safety if it appears then to be well dried out. 

Harvesting Cozvpea . Seed. — Commonly the seed is 
picked by hand as the pods ripen, negro women usually 
doing the work. This is a rather slow and costly method. 
The vines may be cut and threshed with a special pea 
thresher. After being threshed the haulm is readily eat- 
en by stock. The use of this machine should make cow- 
pea seed cheaper, the chief difficulty in using the plant 
having been the cost of seed. 

Cowpeas in Corn. — Cowpeas are commonly planted in 
corn at the time of the last cultivation. They may be 
sown broadcast or put in with a drill. In the South there 
may be much growth during and after the ripening of the 
corn, and a notable gain in fertility. The peas may be 
harvested or fed off by pigs or other animals or all the 
growth left to enrich the soil. The peas may be drilled at 
the time the corn is planted, or soon after. Thus planted 
they may make too much growth for the best develop- 
ment of the corn, though some experimenters believe that 
the corn is fed, with nitrogen directly from the associa- 
tion of the peas. The mass of corn and peas may be put 
into the silo. Commonly, soybeans planted with corn 
give better results for the silo. 

The Cozvpea as a Soil Enricher. — The cowpea is to 
the South what clover is to the North and alfalfa to 
the West. It is a stepping-stone to sufficient fertility 



YIELDS OF COWPEA HAY 



201 



for better farming. Long southern summers are longer 
than the corn crop can utiHze; the cowpea fills in the 
space and keeps the land busy till fall, meanwhile gather- 
ing humus-making material and nitrogen. Two tons 
of cowpea vines to the acre equal in nitrogen content 
600 pounds of nitrate of soda. The cowpea may not 
always enrich soils. Mooers found at the Tennessee 
station that where cowpeas and wheat alternated in rota- 




^.. 









Cowpeas in a Southern Field. 

tion, and the peas were removed from the land, the yield 
of wheat was reduced over adjacent plots where wheat 
followed wheat. In Louisiana, turning under cowpeas 
increased the yield of sugar-cane the first year 2.91 tons, 
the second year 3.69 tons and the third year 0.82 tons. 
The soil on which this cane grew was the alluvial soil of 
the Mississippi River Delta, fully supplied with phos- 
phorus and potassium, lacking only nitrogen and humus. 
The Delaware station finds that a maximum crop of al- 



202 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

falfa yielded 1,230 pounds of protein (containing 200 
pounds of nitrogen) per acre while maximum crops of 
cowpeas and crimson clover yielded about 725 pounds 
each of protein (115 pounds of nitrogen) per acre. Since 
cowpeas and crimson clover may be grown on land where 
alfalfa fails, they will perform its work. It is not worth 
while growing cowpeas where alfalfa thrives, except 
that they may help prepare the land for the better peren- 
nial legume. In Virginia cowpeas often precede sowing 
land to bluegrass, and with marked results. 

Comparing Cowpeas with Soybeans. — I have tested 
these plants side by side in Louisiana, and concluded that 
in nearly all ways soybeans were superior. The soys 
made more forage and more seed and were more easily 
harvested. Cowpeas, however, are better adapted to rude 
methods of cultivation, and may do more to smother 
out weeds. 

The Field of the Cozvpea. — To utilize the soil left 
vacant by ripening corn and gather nitrogen for a suc- 
ceeding crop, to prepare poor land for cultivation, to 
yield nutritious forage hard to gather but worth the 
effort on the southern farm, to store in the soil humus 
and nitrogen to help a following crop, to make a catch 
crop for feeding off the land with hogs, to furnish 
southern farmers with a ready source of protein for 
dairy or feedlot — these are among the uses of the cow- 
pea. It is hardly comparable with clover or alfalfa, but 
even on farms where these may grow it will often find 
temporary use. 

Velvet Bean (Mucuna vitilis). — This is a bean having 
a liking for hot, moist weather and sandy or fairly well- 



COWPEAS RANK GROWERS 



203 



drained soils. It is a rampant grower and will make 
vines 30' to 50' long in a season and in Florida will pro- 
duce 20 to 30 bushels of beans per acre. It makes over 
the land a dense tangle of vines that are commonly al- 
lowed to lie for a year and decay, before they are turned 
under. Hogs and cattle thrive on the beans. The vines 




Velvet Bean, showing leaves, flowers, and young pods. 

are sometimes made into hay and yield from 2 to 4 
tons per acre. The effect on the soil of velvet beans 
is much the same as of cowpeas, but they are not adapted 
to northern latitudes. On Woodland Farm, in central 
Ohio, they made one year a respectable growth, but ani- 
mals accustomed to other forage would not eat them 



204 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

well green. The soil-enriching powers of velvet beans 
are about the same as of cowpeas. The effect of grow- 
ing them in sandy soils far south is most beneficial, and 
is much enhanced when they are liberally fertilized with 
phosphorus and potassium. Much better results with 
velvet beans would be secured if the vines were turned 
under and, the year following their growth, the field 
planted to some crop that could utilize the nitrogen 
gathered. This could readily be done with the large 
disk plows made for deep tillage. 

Soybean (Glycine hispida). — This plant gives promise 
of becoming a great factor in American farming, espe- 
cially in regions parallel in location to Kentucky and 
Tennessee, though it thrives well as far north as the 
40th parallel and is grown more or less for 100 miles 
farther north, and as far south as central or southern 
Louisiana. There are many varieties of the soybean 
which have been grown as feed for men and animals 
for untold centuries in China, Japan and Korea. It is 
a comparatively recent comer to America, but already 
promises to displace the cowpea in many situations and 
to supplement corn in rations for farm animals in such 
states as Tennessee, Oklahoma and Kansas. At pres- 
ent, its most enthusiastic advocates are properly to be 
found in Tennessee, where soil and climate and habits 
of men seem congenial to it. The soybean is distinctly 
unlike any other legume. It commonly stands erect, 
though there are trailing varieties, has strong, hairy 
stems, a strong tap root, broad leaves, small, purplish 
flowers, and short pods downy and with rather few 
seeds. The pods are often attached to the main stem 



THE SOYBEAN DESCRIBED 



205 




A Soy Bean Plant. 

and branches. The seeds are of several colors : green, yel- 
low white and black. Soybeans seem to have more 
varieties and variation than the cowpea. They vary 
in height from 2' to 6', and in time of maturity from 



206 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

90 days to so long a season that they will mature only 
in the region of cotton-growing. Soybeans love sun 
and thrive best if planted when the earth is warm; they 
are not hurt by cool weather so much as cowpeas and 
may be planted somewhat earlier, though it is better 
to plant them a little later than one plants corn. They 
are best planted in drills as close as can be consistent 
with the use of horse cultivation. I have had good suc- 
cess spacing the rows 2' apart, though for large horses 
a little more room is desirable. The beans are not easy 
to get up. The soil should be made fine and level so 
that they can be drilled in at uniform depth, and the 
seeds must not be deep, about i^" being the maximum 
depth allowable. 

Quantity of Seed to Sozv. — The amount of seed re- 
quired is about 20 pounds per acre. It pays well to 
cultivate soybeans carefully till they cover the ground 
and shade it enough to keep down weeds. When the 
seeds are ripe comes the problem of harvesting the crop 
— a problem yet in solution. The most economical way, 
if one wishes to avoid loss of beans, is to cut with a 
short, strong scythe one row at a time, or to use a hand 
knife like a strong, short sickle, taking hold of the plants 
with the left hand, cutting them off and laying them 
aside in bunches to dry. Commonly they are cut with 
mowers or self-rake reapers and left to lie a few days 
in the sun to dry. They may then be threshed with 
a common thresher or a bean thresher. There may be 
much loss from the pods popping open as the plants lie 
drying on the ground. Pigs can afterward glean the 
field. When cut for forage they are mown off before 



SOYBEANS AND INOCULATION 



207 




Typical Soy Bean Plant. 



208 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

the pods are ripe, and made into hay. They cure far more 
easily than cowpeas. 

Soybeans and Inoculation. — It is a curious fact that 
soybeans will, if grown on the same ground consecu- 
tively, inoculate themselves the second year. There is 
yet some undiscovered reason for this fact, which was 
first pointed out by Prof. H. Garman in Kentucky Bul- 
letin 98, page 19. Certain varieties of soybeans become 
inoculated much sooner than other varieties — another 
unexplained fact. One should always, where possible, 
grow soybeans for two or more years successively on 
the same land. Artificial inoculation is very easily per- 
formed; one can take earth where inoculated soys have 
grown, make it fine by sifting, wet the seeds just as 
one is ready to plant, and mix with them the dry, sifted 
earth till they are dry enough to plant. Or, one can 
simply drill the dry, sifted earth along with the beans, 
which may w^ork better with machine-drilling. Unless 
the soil is very rich, the growth with inoculation will be 
much better than without. The nodules of soybeans are 
very large and the amount of nitrogen secured from 
the air must be considerable. 

Uses of Soybeans. — The whole crop may, mixed with 
corn, be put into the silo, and it is believed that thus 
cows may have their protein cheaply supplied. Tests 
with beef cattle do not show superiority of this mixed 
silage over that from corn alone. The beans may be fed 
as a soiling crop, and this is one of the best uses. The 
seeds may be allowed to ripen, threshed and ground and 
fed to pigs to furnish protein for balancing a ration of 
corn. Remarkable results have been achieved in this way, 



CUTTING SOYBEANS FOR HAY 



209 



as one can find by consulting bulletins of the Kansas, 
Oklahoma and Ohio stations. The crop may be fed off 
by cattle on the ground, followed by pigs to glean the 
fallen beans, and thus remarkable gains have been shown. 
The Tennessee and Alabama stations have published valu- 
able bulletins detailing work in this line. Soybeans may 
be cut for hay and results from feeding the hay show that 
it is about as good as alfalfa. When cut for hay the 




A Field of Soy Beans in Tennessee. 

best varieties are the Mammoth and Ito San. For hay 
soybeans should be cut when part of the seed is formed, 
but before the pods ripen. Nothing will make more 
or better growth with lambs than soybeans fed in con- 
nection with other grains. The composition of soybeans 
is such that it has a very high feeding value. Its pro- 
tein content is about 35 per cent and its fat 20 per cent. 
There is no starch in the soybean. In Japan an arti- 
ficial milk is said to be made from the beans, and they 



210 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

are employed in many ways as food for men. They are 
slow to soften with boiling, but if ground into meal make 
delicious soups and porridge. We have grown them for 
a number of years in field culture on Woodland Farm 
and they have been profitable, yielding sometimes nearly 
30 bushels of beans per acre. We decide finally, however, 
that where one's soil is fitted for corn and alfalfa one 
will usually find greater profit in these than in soybeans 
in our latitude, except that it is desirable to have a sup- 
ply of the beans for pushing forward pure-bred lambs. 
In Louisiana the beans were much more profitable than 
cowpeas and easier growm on alluvial soil. I have de- 
voted a good deal of space to this legume because, while 
it is not strictly a meadow plant, it is assuming con- 
siderable importance at present, and is destined to come 
more and more into use in general farm practice, espe- 
cially in the South. Interested readers should have Farm- 
ers' Bulletin 372, from which I quote : 

Comparison of Soybeans and Cowpeas. — Inasmuch as the soybean 
is adapted to nearly the same place in the farm rotation as the cow- 
pea, a comparison of the two plants is pertinent. The soybean is 
determinate in growth; that is, it reached a definite size and ma- 
tures. Nearly all varieties of cowpeas, on the other hand, are in- 
determinate, continuing growth until killed by frost. Soybeans, 
with the exception of a few varieties, do not vine, but grow erect 
or nearly erect. Cowpeas, on the other hand, are viny plants, and 
therefore more difficult to harvest. Soybeans mature all their pods 
at one time. Cowpeas continue to produce green pods as long as 
the plant lives. Soybeans will withstand quite heavy frosts, both 
in the spring, when young, and in the fall, when nearly mature, 
while the same frosts are fatal to cowpeas. Soybeans are more 
drouth resistant than cowpeas, and in a dry season will give much 
greater yields ; they will also withstand excessive moisture much 
better. For green manuring or soil improving, the cowpea is far 



CHIEF FACTS ABOUT SOYBEANS 211 

more valuable than the soybean, as it will smother weeds much 
more successfully. The value of the hay of the two plants is near- 
ly the same. There is frequently doubt as to which is the more 
desirable to grow. On relatively poor soil or when broadcasted 
cowpeas are always preferable. When cultivated, the soybean will 
yield the greater return, and if cut late the hay is more easily cured. 
For growing with corn or sorghum for hay or silage the cowpea 
is generally preferable to the soybean. The feeding value of an 
acre of soybeans for beef cattle was found by the Tennessee Ex- 
periment Station to be about 50 .per cent greater than that of cow- 
peas grown on an adjoining acre. This was also approximately the 
difference in yield of the two crops. As a grain producer the soy- 
bean is in every way preferable to the cowpea, as it produces larger 
yields of richer grain and can be harvested much more easily. The 
soybean, therefore, is to be recommended above the cowpea where 
intensive rather than extensive farming is practicable and desirable. 

SUMMARY. 

For intensive farming the soybean is the best annual legume to 
grow for forage in the southern part of the cottonbelt and into 
the southern part of the cornbelt. The soybean, whether used as 
hay, grain, straw or silage, is very valuable as feed for live stock. 
Soybean hay is practically identical in feeding value with alfalfa 
and yields from 2 to 3 tons per acre. To make good soybean hay 
the crop must be cut when about half the pods are full grown or 
when the top leaves first begin to turn yellow. Soybean grain is 
more valuable than cottonseed-meal as a supplemental feed in the 
production of pork, mutton, wool, beef, milk and butter. A bushel 
of soybeans is at least twice as valuable for feed as a bushel of 
corn. As the grain is hard it is usually desirable to grind it into 
meal for feeding. This is best done b}^ mixing with corn before 
the grinding to prevent gumming up the mill. 

Harvesting ordinarily should be done when the leaves first begin 
to turn yellow, as the quality of the straw rapidly deteriorates 
thereafter and the yield of seed will be practically as large as at 
any later time. From 20 to 30 bushels of grain and li^ to 2 tons 
of straw per acre are not uncommon. If soybeans are grown for 
the seed alone, and sometimes this is desirable, the harvesting can 
be done most easily by waiting until all the leaves have fallen. Soy- 
bean straw, if the crop is cut before the leaves fall, is fully as val- 



212 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

uable for feeding as timothy hay for cattle, and is eaten by stock 
with much relish. Even when the harvesting is delayed until all 
the leaves have fallen, stock will eat the straw readily. Mixed with 
corn, soybeans are excellent for silage. The two crops may be 
grown together, but it is usually better practice to plant in separate 
fields and mix when putting into the silo. It is necessary to give 
the soil thorough preparation in order to be successful with soy- 
beans. Only fresh seed or seed which has been tested for germina- 
tion should be planted. Two-year-old seed is usually not reliable. 
The seed should be planted shallow, not to exceed 2'' in depth, and 
preferably in rows 30" or, better, 36" apart to permit sufficient cul- 
tivation to keep down weeds. For harvesting soybeans a mower 
with or without a side-delivery attachment, a self-rake reaper, or 
a self-binder can be used. A binder can be used only with the tall 
varieties. The thrashing can be done with a grain separator by 
using blank concaves and running the cylinder much slower than 
for small grains or by the use of machines specially designed for 
handling soybeans and cowpeas. 

Soybeans and cowpeas can be grown together satisfactorily; the 
hay of such a mixture is better than either crop alone and the yield 
is generally greater. In planting the two together the seed should 
not be covered too deeply, as deep planting will result in a poor 
stand of soybeans. As a crop in a short rotation soybeans are very 
desirable. They can be grown so as to use an entire season in the 
case of the late varieties, or two crops in one season can be se- 
cured from some of the earlier ones. They can also be used very 
advantageously to follow a small-grain crop the same season. The 
important commercial varieties of soybeans are the Mammoth, the 
HoUybrook, and the Ito San. Among the most valuable new va- 
rieties are the Austin, the Wilson, the Riceland, the Meyer, and 
the Haberlandt." 

Alfalfa or Lucerne (Medicago sativa). — I have pur- 
posely left the description of the best forage plant to 
the last. There is no clover, vetch, cowpea, soybean 
or grass, worth growing where alfalfa will grow well. 
Of all forage plants alfalfa is easily queen. It makes 
the greatest weight of forage during the year. The 
forage is richer than almost any other, and more palatable. 



THE VIRTUES OF ALFALFA 



213 



All animals thrive exceedingly eating alfalfa either green 
or dry. As the old Roman author put it, "It is good 
for all manner of famished cattle whatever." Alfalfa 
uses the whole of the soil, rooting deeply ; it uses all 
of the season since it is hardy and endures frost. It re- 





young Alfalfa Plants Attacked by 
Dodder. 



Mature Dodder Plant on an Alfalfa 
Stem. 



quires sowing only once in several years. It enriches 
soils more than any other clover. It has many vir- 
tues and not one fault save that it will not groAV on im- 
poverished soils nor on sour, cold or wet soils. These 
very faults are made virtues because they cause men to 



214 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

think and study their soils and become better farmers 
and better men. The truth is that any soil that will 
not grow alfalfa is seriously deficient, and when it has 
been so ameliorated that alfalfa thrives on it the soil 
is fit for any crop whatever, save that it may be too 
full of nitrogen to grow oats or other grains with soft 
straw. 

Alfalfa is a strongly perennial clover-like legume, hav- 
ing a large deeply penetrating root and a top with 
many branching stems. It carries a small purple, green- 
ish or yellow bloom, and the seeds are arranged in screw- 
like pods. It is a plant starting very early in spring and 
capable of yielding 2 to 6 or 8 crops in one year, 3 cut- 
tings being commonly taken in Ohio, Illinois, Nebraska 
and Colorado, and more in regions to the southward. 

History. — No one knows the origin of alfalfa. It 
came to Europe through the Persians and was highly 
esteemed by the ancients. It has long been cultivated 
in Europe under the name of "lucerne" and is today 
held in the highest esteem of any legume in France, 
Italy and some other countries with soil and climate 
adapted to its culture. Though it has been grown many 
centuries, it is only within recent years that it has been 
well understood, so that today its culture is being more 
rapidly extended in parts of Europe than ever before. 
I saw its introduction pushed in Denmark and listened 
with pleased interest to accounts of its virtues and needs, 
"that the soil be well drained, that it have lime enough 
and inoculation." 

The Spanish people brought alfalfa to the New World 
from Chili; it came to California whence it spread to 



SOILS FOR ALFALFA 215 

Utah, Colorado, Kansas and the east. Our grandfathers 
grew it too in a small way, bringing seed from France 
and England, and some few spots, such as the lime- 
stone region about Onondaga Co., N. Y., grew it for 
many years, as did a few farmers in Virginia and else- 
where. Possibly I should state that I began growing 
alfalfa in Utah in 1886, and alfalfa seed was first sown 
on Woodland Farm the same year by my father. In 
1900, convinced of its great worth, my brothers and I 
began growing it in a small way in Ohio on the farm 
on which we still reside. Since then I have studied the 
plant in many states and foreign countries, and may 
hope to have been helpful in getting it established on 
many farms that had not previously grown it. 

Soil for Alfalfa Grozmig. — Alfalfa roots penetrate 
deep and forage wide. They refuse to grow in a wet 
soil and may die and root off if the soil fills with water 
for even a few days in hot weather. A dry soil, then, 
is the first requisite. Nevertheless, land not naturally 
dry may be made dry by drainage. On Woodland Farm 
are many acres growing very good alfalfa that had first 
to be drained by tiles. In tiling land where alfalfa is 
to be sown, one should dig trenches 3' to 5' deep wher- 
ever this is practicable. In truth, land drained to a less 
depth than 30" had better be devoted to another more 
shallow-rooted legume. In Louisiana, however, I have 
seen very good alfalfa grown where the permanent water 
table was hardly more than 2' down, but there the plant 
was treated almost as an annual; thriving at first, it 
became unthrifty after a year or as soon as its roots 
had reached the saturated subsoil. After a soil is drv, 



216 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

next consider its lime content. Alfalfa loves carbonate 
of lime. So-called ''natural alfalfa soils" are always 
soils heavily charged with carbonate of lime. The al- 
falfa-growing soils of Colorado, for example, contain 
from ijA per cent to as much as lo per cent or more 
of carbonate of lime. The same condition is m.et every- 
where in the West. In southeast Missouri along the Mis- 
sissippi River one finds alfalfa growing vigorously; one 
finds, too, a soil with about i}4 per cent of carbonate 
of lime. In Louisiana, on a very heavy, tenacious "buck- 
shot" clay residue from the overflow of the Mississippi 
River, I found alfalfa thriving well, and analysis showed 
a lime content of about i^ per cent or a little more. 
On Woodland Farm the subsoil is well filled with small 
limestone pebbles and the surface soil of the best alfalfa 
fields will effervesce when muriatic acid is poured onto 
the soil. A natural alfalfa-growing region is found in 
Alabama and Mississippi on the rotten limestone of the 
black prairie region. Onondaga Co., N. Y., is made 
up largely of limestone hills; there alfalfa thrives. In 
the parts of France having most lime in the soil one finds 
the most lucerne. In England it is grown where the soil 
is calcareous or lime-impregnated. I have nowhere found 
alfalfa growing profitably or well except on soils well 
filled with lime either by nature or by man. 

Soils Can Be Made Fit to Grow Alfalfa. — The fact 
that alfalfa is a lime-loving plant would be discourag- 
ing were it not that its peculiar requirements are quite 
easily met if men will take trouble. For instance, there 
are hardly any soils less adapted naturally to alfalfa- 
growing than the sands of the Gulf Coast. These sands 



ALFALFA FAILURES 217 

are deficient in lime and in nearly all the mineral ele- 
ments of fertility. In their natural state they would not 
nourish alfalfa well enough to keep it alive for one year. 
Alfalfa had always failed there until at last men learned 
of its lime hunger. Since then, by using sufficient car- 
bonate of lime on these sandy soils, alfalfa-growing has 
been established, and as healthy alfalfa plants are now 
growing within sight of the blue waters of the Gulf of 
Mexico as can be found anywhere. If one wishes al- 
falfa anywhere one can have it if one is willing to pay 
the price, and the price is simply what it will cost to lime 
the soil well, preferably with unburned raw ground lime- 
stone or carbonate of lime, then to make the soil dry and 
fertile and sow seed with inoculation. Success is abso- 
lutely certain, given these conditions. What will all this 
cost? Is the game worth the candle? 

It all depends on what one is trying to do, on one's 
ideals, agriculturally. It depends on the man, as well — 
whether he is a ''first-rater" or content with things sec- 
ond best. It is easy enough, however, to estimate what 
it will cost to make land ready for alfalfa — land that i-s 
naturally very deficient. Experiments show that if one 
uses burned and fresh-slaked lime one will need from 
2 to 4 tons to the acre. More than this might decrease 
the bacterial content of the soil enough to lessen the 
chance of a stand and crop. Less than 2 tons to the 
acre would not do the trick. If air-slaked lime is used, 
as much as 3 to 6 tons to the acre may be applied. If 
ground and unburned limestone can be had, and this 
is best of all, one may use as much as one chooses and 
the proper amount to satisfy will be found to be 4 to 10 



218 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

tons per acre. Useful to most plants, it is simply indis- 
pensable to alfalfa. There is absolutely no doubt that 
the fresh ground limestone is safer and better than any 
other form of lime when one is using large amounts in 
the soil. I rejoice that recently many have been taught 
to believe in this, and doubtless this year has seen applied 
to fields destined to grow alfalfa at least ioo,(X)0 tons of 
carbonate of lime in the form of ground limestone, many 
using 4 tons to the acre, some using 6, some 8 and some 
lo tons. Further, I have been able to induce manufac- 
turers to make portable grinding machines that will go 
direct to the farm and grind into dust the limestone rocks 
that may be stored in the soil or strewn over it, and 
many of these machines are in use from Pennsylvania 
to Georgia. I have, then, a pretty fair knowledge of 
what it will cost to make into an alfalfa field land now 
unfit because of lack of lime. To buy ground lime- 
stone on cars in Illinois costs about 85 cents a ton — 
this where it is ground by the state with penitentiary 
convicts. In other states private capital is grinding it 
and selling it for around $1 to $1.25 per ton. When 
it is shipped and delivered to farms it costs commonly 
about $2 to $2.50 per ton. When the farmer grinds 
it himself and puts it on his soil from rocks that lay scat- 
tered over his pastures it costs less than $2 a ton, and 
some estimate it as low as $1.25. Further, when land is 
sweetened by the use of large amounts of ground lime- 
stone, it remains sweet for many years. Afterward ap- 
plication of an occasional dressing of a ton to the acre 
will ordinarily suffice in most regions to keep established 
alfalfa in a vigorous, profitable condition. 



LIMESTONE AND ALFALFA 219 

Where is Liming Needed? — There are a few areas in 
southeastern Kansas that need hme, and also in Iowa, 
though probably not very much of it. Much land in 
Missouri needs sweetening; all of southern Illinois and 
much of southern Indiana need it, and there are instances 
everywhere over Indiana where it would be beneficial, 
and from Indiana eastward one finds an increased lime- 
hunger in soils till one at last reaches the Atlantic Sea- 
board. Where it is not needed is where bits and frag- 
ments of limestone are found mixed through the soil, 
left there by glacial ice or by the breaking down of lime- 
stone rocks. Nearly the whole South needs carbonate 
of lime sadly, the exceptions being the alluvial prairie 
lands along the Mississippi, the Red, the Arkansas, and 
some other rivers, and the black prairie lands of Ala- 
bama and Mississippi. Liming is not commonly needed 
where red clover grows rank and tall, where bluegrass 
comes of itself and covers, although there are exceptions 
to that rule, and I have seen good bluegrass land that 
grew poor alfalfa till it was dressed with carbonate of 
lime, after which it grew splendid alfalfa, and the blue- 
grass too was greatly improved. 

I make no apology for spending so much time in coup- 
ling alfalfa with lime and drainage because really if the 
reader had good enough drainage and plenty of car- 
bonate of lime in his soil he would find alfalfa to grow 
so easily that he would not trouble to read this chapter 
at all. And yet there are other essentials; they are 
found in nature associated with soils calcareous and well 
drained, though when one is artificially making such a 
soil one may require to supply them. 



220 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

Simple Test for Lime in Soils. — The old litmus paper 
test for sour soils is hardly conclusive to the alfalfa 
grower, since it does not tell enough. Alfalfa is not 
content with a soil that is simply neutral; it revels in a 
soil fairly alkaline with lime and there keeps its most 
perfect health. Fortunately the test for carbonate of 
lime is a simple one. Muriatic acid, a cheap chemical 
obtainable at any druggist's, when poured on soil having 
in it a large amount of carbonate of lime, will vigorously 
effervesce. The bubbles given off are bubbles of car- 
bonic acid gas. If your alfalfa is sickly and yellow, 
if sorrel comes in and alfalfa goes out, test that land 
and the subsoil for effervescence. Ten to one you will 
find nowhere any of it. Then begin seeking a source of 
carbonate of lime cheap enough so that you can afford 
to use it in large amounts, or else forsake alfalfa for 
alsike clover and redtop. 

Fertile Soils for Alfalfa. — Alfalfa also revels in a fer- 
tile soil. I have found no plant of use to men that 
does not like a fertile soil, but alfalfa more than most 
revels in sufficient plant food. It likes abundant potas- 
sium, phosphorus, some humus and much carbonate of 
lime. Withal, it is a famous soil-enricher ; its nodule- 
bearing roots gather more free nitrogen from the air 
than those of almost any other legume, but it will not 
enrich very poor soils as well as will vetches, for exam- 
ple, or cowpeas. It likes a soil on which man has worked, 
although it finds in nature on the western plains soils 
that suit it to perfection. In the older eastern states 
it revels in rich, loamy, drained, sweet soils, full of 
humus, full of beneficent bacteria. I have often remarked 



METHODS OF ENRICHING SOIL 221 

that in the East one could nearly predict whether alfalfa 
would thrive in a field or no by simply watching the 
plowman as he walked. If behind him blackbirds fol- 
lowed he might feel sure that alfalfa w-ould succeed; 
if no blackbirds came he might well doubt. The black- 
birds follow where there are earthworms. Earthworms 
are in soils drained and stored with vegetable matter. 
Where earthworms are bacteria also exist in myriads. 
If, then, that soil in which blackbirds feed has in it 
much carbonate of lime success with alfalfa is assured, 
if a few other easily-met requirements are obeyed. In 
short, make the soil dry, sweeten it with lime if you are 
farming on soil needing lime, make it rich, then sow 
alfalfa. 

There are many ways of enriching land. In some 
places men grow crimson clover, fertilizing it well, 
which they turn under in spring and allow to decay 
to make humus to aid alfalfa-growing. Dairymen and 
stock feeders apply manure for a preceding crop, putting 
it on heavily; of this enough is left to cause the alfalfa 
to grow off vigorously. Any method of good farming 
whatever that will make the soil rich if it is not already 
so, wnll serve. I have found, however, that it is better 
if one can avoid turning under manure directly for alfal- 
fa. If one could begin by manuring the land heavily, 
then grow corn or some crop that could be kept clean, 
give absolutely clean culture for a year, and then sow 
the alfalfa, one would avoid the curse of weeds. After 
all, no universal rule of soil culture will serve. On an 
old plantation in Louisiana, misused for 50 years or 
more, but of naturally rich alluvial soil, I sow^ed alfalfa. 



222 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

The land would not grow more than 25 bushels of corn 
per acre and seemed very poor, hard and clayey. Wish- 
ing to make alfalfa succeed I cleaned out a stable that 
had in it 40 years' manure and enriched part of one field 
well. I used also commercial fertilizers, chiefly of phos- 
phorus. Other parts of the land had no manuring what- 
ever. The final result showed absolutely no difference in 
growth between the manured and the unmanured land — 
no sign of the fertilizer was discernible. The fact was, 
the soil was very rich m phosphorus and potassium. 
The alfalfa did not mind its deficiency in nitrogen, since 
the soil carried naturally the bacteria that alfalfa re- 
quires and as soon as it started to grow it gathered its 
own nitrogen. I have nowhere seen such a result else- 
where, and it is a safe rule to make soils destined to 
grow alfalfa as rich as one well can. Assuredly here 
I address my words to farmers in eastern America; 
dwellers in Idaho and Colorado may smile if they will, 
though in Nebraska manure gave good returns applied 
as preparation for alfalfa, as, also, it did in Iowa. Now, 
with rich land, drained, filled with carbonate of lime, 
are we ready to sow alfalfa? Nearly. Now comes in- 
oculation. I know of no plant more dependent on its 
bacteria than alfalfa. Without them it is a poor, sickly, 
short-lived plant. 

There are several ways of inoculating land for al- 
falfa, but first let us consider where if is needed. Assur- 
edly not in California nor in any of the semi-arid land 
of the West; not, commonly, in Kansas now, though 
once it was needed ; not often any more in Nebraska, but 
in all the region east of the Missouri River one is apt to 



INOCULATION FOR ALFALFA 223 

run against land destitute of the alfalfa bacteria. It is 
pretty safe to assume that if you have never grown alfalfa 
on your farm you will be helped by inoculation. 
If sweet clover grows naturally there you have the bac- 
teria; they inhabit at pleasure either legume. If you 
have fed hay made from alfalfa meadows and used the 
manure you have inoculation ; in fact, wherever you have 
used much manure of any sort the chances are that you 
have the bacteria. At the same time, I have seen very 
small and sickly alfalfa growing close to a barn where 
presumably much manure had been spilled, and search 
showed that there were no nodules on any of the alfalfa 
roots. In part this may have been the result of acidity 
of soil, since no lime had been used there. In the course 
of many years' study I have yet to find any soil full of 
carbonate of lime and highly manured that especially 
needed inoculation. However, the trick is of inestimable 
value on soils that need it, and many do, as there is an 
overwhelming wealth of experience to prove. 

Alluvial soils commonly do not need inoculation. For 
example, in Louisiana there was no need of inoculation 
in the heavy ''buckshot" soils, but in the sandy soils with 
less lime, inoculation was good. Inoculation is the life 
of alfalfa in eastern Virginia, in Maryland and, in truth, 
in most of the Atlantic Coast region. It is less seldom 
practiced in Ohio, but is strongly advised for New York. 
It is safe to do it wherever alfalfa is a new crop. On 
our own farm in Ohio we observe that we now commonly 
get a crop of hay the year it is sown, whereas in former 
years, while we got good stands, we got no hay till the 
second year. 



224 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

Hozv to inoculate. — The safe way is by use of soil 
from either a successful alfalfa field or from a sweet 
clover patch. If it is near at hand load up the earth in 
a manure spreader, and just before sowing the seed dis- 
tribute the soil' lightly over the field, following the 
spreader close with a harrow that will mix the inoculat- 
ing earth with the soil below so that the bacteria will 
not be hurt by the sunlight, which is commonly fatal to 
them. If one must purchase soil one can make it fine 
and mix loo pounds with 20 pounds of seed and sow the 
two together, covering instantly. If the seed and soil 
are very well mixed together they may be sown with a 
drill. There are now made drills that sow alfalfa seed 
very well, putting it in at slight depth and affordiing 
nearly perfect opportunity for growth. One can dry 
inoculating material in the shade, make it fine by pass- 
ing it through a sieve, wet the seed well and as soon as 
it has drained but not dried mix with it enough of the 
dry earth to make it sowable or drillable. This method 
requires very little earth and gives good inoculation. 

Spring or Summer Seeding. — In Oklahoma spring seed- 
ing is commonly practiced because then farmers can have 
enough moisture to start the plants, while their falls are 
commonly dry as well as their midsummers. In Kansas 
the same conditions prevail more or less, though some 
midsummer and fall seeding is done there. In Iowa 
sowing after oats or early potatoes or on land that 
has been kept fallow during the early season gives good 
results, while, because of the weed-infested nature of the 
soil, spring seeding is not always successful. In Illinois 
much midsummer seeding is done, and some spring seed- 



SPRING SEEDING OF ALFALFA 225 

ing. In northern Ohio, where is located our experiment 
station, midsummer seeding seems best, while in central 
Ohio, where is Woodland Farm, spring seeding has al- 
ways been most successful. It seems to be largely a 
matter of previous treatment of the soil; where land 
has been permitted to become very much infested with 
weeds it is hardly safe to sow alfalfa in spring until 
a course of cleansing has been given ; where the land 
is fairly clean spring seeding is best. It also follows 
lime to a greater or less degree. For example, in the 
lime lands of Alabama men can often sow alfalfa in 
spring, midsummer or fall, while in most of the South 
only fall-seeding is safe, because of weeds and crab- 
grass. There is a steady increase in the call for seed 
during June, July and August so that now rather more 
than half what some seedsmen sell goes at this season, 
whereas once nearly all was sold in February, March and 
April. 

Clean Land Essential to Spring Seeding. — I am sure 
that few farms could have shown more weeds in corn- 
fields than once we grew on Woodland Farm. After 
we began growing alfalfa, however, and became de- 
sirous of having a clean seedbed for it, we learned to 
cultivate better and to clean out the cornfields with hoes 
after the corn was 'laid by." The cost of this we found 
was not great, and we warred especially on redroot, 
lambsquarter and pigeongrass, or foxtail. All these are 
bad weeds in young alfalfa; the foxtail nearly kills 
it and is bad in old meadows as well. We had no hope 
that our efforts would result in more than lessening the 
weeds, but already we have found a marvelous change 



226 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

in our fields. In this year's seeding (1910) there are 
many rods of alfalfa with not one weed nor one spear 
of foxtail grass, but only clean, healthy alfalfa, whereas 
in our neighborhood alfalfa is so overgrown with weeds 
that it is doubtful whether it will survive at all. We 
have learned one encouraging lesson ; foxtail may readily 
be exterminated. It requires but one year's perfectly 
clean cultivation to accomplish this, as the seed will not 
lie dormant in the earth as will seeds of some other weeds. 
It pays, then, to keep the land clean where alfalfa is to 
be sown the following year. 

Depth of Plowing. — In parts of the Old World men 
plow much more deeply than we do in America. In 
France it is common to plow^ 20" deep for alfalfa. It 
has been our experience that, commonly, the deeper land 
is plowed for alfalfa the better the health and vigor of 
the plants, and the less danger from weeds. Soils vary, 
subsoils sometimes containing much more carbonate of 
lime than do surface soils above them. Where this con- 
dition obtains it pays to plow as deeply as one can. I 
have seen clean, vigorous, thrifty alfalfa on deep-plowed 
land and just alongside it poor, thriftless, weed-infested 
plants where it had been plowed shallow. On the other 
hand, there are doubtless soils where deep plowing would 
do no especial good. The new type of disk plow or 
"tilling machine" that uses two disks, both in one fur- 
row, one under the other, promises to be a great aid to 
alfalfa-growing. Deep-plowed land will hold much 
more moisture than shallow-plowed, which is a decided 
advantage nearly everywhere, as there is seldom or never 
enough moisture in the soil throughout the season. As 



THE SOWING OF ALFALFA 227 

a rule, then, plow for alfalfa as deep as you can, no 
matter how much raw, fresh earth you turn up. It is 
wise to leave strips for testing the result with ordinary 
plowing. 

Seedbed for Alfalfa. — The plowing should be done 
some time before seeding time where this is convenient. 
It is necessary for it to be in some manner settled to- 
gether. When seeding must follow^ plowing at short 
intervals, one can use the disk and other harrows freely 
to bring the earth firmly together again. A fine, firm 
seedbed is needed, made smooth enough so that one can 
seed to a uniform depth. If the alfalfa is to be irrigated 
the land must be carefully leveled also, so that the water 
may be led over it at no place too deep, yet all be covered. 

Quantity of Seed to Sozu. — Alfalfa seed of good qual- 
ity commonly germinates well. When sown broadcast 
and covered with the drill or harrow if the seedbed is 
good 15 pounds of seed will give a thick stand. When 
the seed is drilled with special alfalfa drills so that each 
seed has proper depth of planting, 5 pounds or less gives 
a thick stand. Ordinarily as sown on rough ground 
and given unequal covering it is advisable to sow 20 
pounds to the acre. The Ohio station secured the same 
yields from 5 and 25 pounds. The practice with us is 
to sow from 15 to 20 pounds. It does no harm to have 
a stand slightly too thick. Nature thins it soon enough. 
To sow 30 pounds to the acre seems sheer w^aste. 

Nurse-Crop for Alfalfa. — With spring seeding east of 
the Missouri River a nurse-crop seems desirable. One 
gains the hay made from the nurse-crop and ordinarily 
does no injury to the stand. The nurse-crop in a measure 



228 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

prevents growth of annual grasses and weeds. Beard- 
less spring barley is by far the best nurse-crop, since it 
is not apt to lodge and draws less moisture from the soil 
than would oats. One bushel of barley to the acre 
is enough. Commonly it should be cut for hay, though 
if it stands well it may be allowed to ripen its seed. If 
oats are sown as a nurse-crop 3 pecks of good seed will 
be enough for an acre, and the crop must be mown for 
hay as early as bloom appears, else the stand of alfalfa 
will be greatly weakened or entirely destroyed. Long ago 
a farmer in New Jersey told of using winter rye as a 
nurse-crop, sowing it in the spring. We tried this with 
excellent results. The thrift of the alfalfa was better 
in the part of the field sown to rye than in any other 
part, and the stand was perfect. Winter rye sown in 
spring should not be allowed to form heads ; it dies down 
when hot weather comes, and thus does its work without 
injury to the alfalfa. 

Method of Sozmng Alfalfa in Spring. — Our practice 
for many years has been to make the land ready by sev- 
eral diskings and harrowings, having it smooth by using 
last a plank drag. A common grain drill with a grass 
seeding attachment sows the barley, one bushel to the 
acre, and the alfalfa is sown ahead of the drill so that 
it is covered by the disks. Some of it is covered too 
deeply, but enough gets through to give a good stand. 
A plank drag -is floated over the field to make a finishing 
touch, so that the mowers may run nicely there later in 
the season. Having all our land inoculated now, we 
give that matter no thought; were we to start in a 
new place we should first distribute the inoculating earth. 



FERTILIZING AND DRILLING ALFALFA 229 

Fertiliser for Alfalfa. — The sooner alfalfa gets a vig- 
orous start the better; therefore it is wise to fertilize it 
well as it is sown. We commonly use bonemeal or acid 
phosphate at the rate of 300 pounds per acre, though 
we have used ''floats" or fine-ground raw phosphatic 
rock with good results, using of course more to the acre. 
In Virginia I have, by the way, seen better results come 
from 900 pounds of floats to the acre than grew on an 
adjoining plot where was applied 400 pounds of bone- 
meal. Sometimes we add a little potassium to the ferti- 
lizer, this on special soils needing that element. We 
do not use nitrogen on soils that are inoculated and 
think it more often harmful than helpful since it en- 
courages weed growth. 

Alfalfa Seed Drill — A drill is on the market that 
will sow alfalfa seed at the proper depth, and several 
manufacturers are now working at the problem of mak- 
ing drills that will accurately place alfalfa seed as to 
depth and amount. Such drills should save much seed 
and give uniform stands. They can not work well unless 
the land is made verv fine, smooth and level. In usine 
such drills where a nurse-crop is desired, one can double- 
drill ; that is, follow the grain drill with the alfalfa drill. 
In seeding later in the season where no nurse-crop is 
permissible the alfalfa drill finds its almost undisputed 
field. 

Summer Care of Spring-Sozvn Alfalfa. — When the lit- 
tle alfalfa plants are six weeks old and 5" high they will 
be found to be inoculated and to have nodules attached 
to their roots. Your sole care will be to keep off of the 
field and keep all animals off. Should coarse weeds ap- 



230 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

pear they may be pulled by hand. Carefully avoid clip- 
ping or cutting the alfalfa until it has sent out from the 
base of the stems, at the crown, small shoots or suckers 
that are about to make new stems. When these shoots 
come the alfalfa needs cutting without much regard to 
how large it is or whether it happens to be in bloom or 
no. If it is mown off the first season before these shoots 
appear it may be destroyed. In truth the rule holds good 
during the life of the plant that it should not be mown 
off before the shoots appear; after the first year it will 
not die if mown too soon but it will be markedly weak- 
ened. Let it alone, then, till it is ready to cut; then 
cut it off with its accompanying nurse-crop and make 
into hay. Ordinarily there will follow another growth 
that will be made into hay in about 40 days. 

Fall Care of Nezv-Sown Alfalfa. — I admit that I am 
writing this chiefly for the help of men living out of 
the recognized alfalfa-growing districts. In Utah it did 
not much matter what one did to alfalfa ; it came serenely 
forward the next year just the same, and this is true of 
Idaho, Colorado and other western states. In all the 
eastern country, however, it pays well to send alfalfa 
into winter with a growth standing of at least 12". There- 
fore we avoid late cutting and never in the East pasture 
in the fall, unless we desire to destroy the alfalfa and 
plow it up. Bear this well in mind : Land well inocu- 
lated can safely be seeded in the spring, as the vigorous 
alfalfa gets ahead of the weeds. 

Summer and Fall-Seeding of Alfalfa. — Commonly 
men sow alfalfa seed in late summer or early fall. The 
reason for this is that their soils are thoroughly well 



SUMMER SOWING OF ALFALFA 231 

seeded with weeds and foxtail grass, so that they do 
not dare sow in the spring. There are certain rather 
rigid requirements that must be met if one is to sow in 
the summer or fall. First, manage to get a good seed- 
bed, fine, firm, moist and deep. He may slight his seed- 
bed somewhat in early April, but he must make it very 
perfect indeed if he sows in July, August or Septem- 
ber, as the hot suns of the summer soon take out the 
moisture and leave the seeds to perish. The ways most 
commonly adopted for midsummer seeding are to plow 
in the spring and afterward give weekly harrowings to 
retain moisture till mid-July, by which means also one 
will destroy most of the weed seeds that lie near the 
surface; or, sow the land to barley, oats or wheat, cut 
off the crop either for grain or for hay and at once plow 
the land and prepare the seedbed for alfalfa; or, plant 
earh^ potatoes, as early as possible in the spring, enrich 
the land well where they are and dig as soon as possible, 
then immediately prepare the land and sow to alfalfa. 
The latter plan works well where one wishes to grow 
potatoes. The heavy fertilization needed for the crop, 
and the frequent cultivation during the season of its 
growth, together with the cultivation given by digging, 
leave the land in good order for alfalfa. When one plows 
a stubble to sow to alfalfa one should take all possible 
care to avoid loss of moisture. The best method is to 
harrow and make fine each morning and afternoon w^hat 
is plowed during the half day. One may plow till lo 
o'clock, then harrow on the strip till noon, plow again 
till 4 o'clock and harrow till 6. The use of the roller 
will also aid in conserving moisture at this time. 



232 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

One can not safely sow alfalfa seed in the dust. There 
is danger that there may come a shower sufficient to 
make the seed germinate, but not sufficient to wet the 
underlying dust. The result would be that the little 
seedling would perish before its rootlets could reach soil 
moisture below. One must wait till the earth is moist 
clear down before sowing the seed, or take chances. 
After a good rain, as soon as the soil is fit to work, har- 
row to loosen the surface and then drill in the seed. 
No nurse-crop is needed or permissible in fall or mid- 
summer seeding of alfalfa. North of Tennessee one 
should sow as early as possible after the middle of July. 
Alfalfa is in no sense a plant like wheat or rye or tim- 
othy grass, liking to be sown in the fall. It must get 
a strong root before cold weather or it will likely perish. 

Making a Seedbed in the South. — In Louisiana I had 
direction of a demonstration farm on an old abandoned 
cotton plantation. The soil was the so-called ''buckshot," 
that is, a dense clay made by a deposit of still flowing 
water of the Mississippi River, rich in lime, rich in phos- 
phorus and potassium but very deficient in vegetable mat- 
ter and nitrogen. The land was level and wet, being 
flooded by each heavy rainstorm. Previous attempts at 
alfalfa-growing had commonly resulted in failure, though 
the manager had established one thrifty field on slightly 
sloping ground. The first successful step in getting al- 
falfa there was to plow the land lo" deep in July, throw- 
ing it into ridges 2 rods wide and as high in the centers 
as we could raise it. The middle furrows were cleaned 
out with a road grader so as to give perfect drainage. 
When we had the land ridged, the rounded ridges re- 



CLIPPING ALFALFA SEEDINGS 233 

sembled well-graded roads; the summit of each ridge 
was about 2' above the furrow. The land being im- 
mensely hard, broke up in great lumps and clods. These 
we made no effort to subdue, as they were quite hopeless. 
When rain came at last the clods melted, then the disk 
and other harrows were used and the land made into a 
fine seedbed. In September, weather and soil conditions 
were right, and the seed was sown. It came up well and 
made a good growth before cold weather. The follow- 
ing year each of the fields made fine harvests of hay, 
probably the best that had ever been grown in the Mis- 
sissippi bottoms in Louisiana. These buckshot soils need- 
ing no inoculation, none was given. I mention this in- 
stance to point a lesson. The preparation for alfalfa 
wxnt on up to seeding time. All the land that was 
plowed early made good alfalfa, the first plowed lands 
the best. From this degree of value there was steady 
deterioration, till at last there was complete failure. The 
early-prepared land is the winner with alfalfa sowing, 
since one can not in late plowings often get a fine, moist, 
firm seedbed. 

Do Not Clip S codings of Alfalfa. — Nothing is to be 
done with late-seeded alfalfa except to leave it alone. If 
one can stimulate it by fertilization at the time of seed- 
ing to make rapid growth well and good; one can help 
it no more after the seed is sown in the ground. Neither 
clip, pasture nor even let an animal set foot on it again 
till warm weather in spring. The one thing that one 
may do in the North is to go over it wath the manure 
spreader after the land freezes and sprinkle it with ma- 
nure — enough to prevent the frequent freezing and thaw- 



234 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

ing of the land, but not enough to smother the Httle al- 
falfa. Light, chaffy, strawy manure is better here than 
heavy material. 

Treatment and Use of Alfalfa Meadows. — If one's 
land is deficient in phosphorus (and whose is not east 
of the Missouri River?) one should in the spring go over 
the alfalfa meadow with a fertilizer distributor and leave 
there a good dressing of some phosphatic fertilizer. 
Various substances are available; basic slag, which has 
in it much lime and available phosphorus, is a good thing 
to use near the seaboard where it is cheap. Freights to 
the Middle West make it impracticable to use it there. 
Acid phosphate is everywhere available and is so soluble 
that it is perhaps the best substance for mere top-dress- 
ing. Bonemeal is always good and can be got into 
the soil by disking or by use of the spring-tooth har- 
row. One can apply raw phosphatic rock or floats, 
though it is not available unless mixed through the soil, 
and will need to be well dug in with spring-tooth or 
disk harrow. We seem to keep up the production of 
our alfalfa meadows by using 300 pounds to the acre 
of acid phosphate of as high analysis as we can buy. 
Next let the alfalfa alone. It injures it to walk through 
it or drive through it. Rust is its bane in the East; 
wherever it is disturbed this rust starts and from that 
point it spreads. I have seen alfalfa destroyed in a strip 
20' wide along a footpath made by fishermen near a 
creek; it is injured where teams turn in cultivating 
corn. Let it be till it is ready to be mown. 

Time to Mow Alfalfa. — When you suspect, finally, 
that the alfalfa is ready to be made into hay, go to the 



MAKING ALFALFA HAY 235 

field and, getting on your knees, make close examination 
to see the condition of the small shoots near the ground. 
If these have not yet started at all, delay a little until 
they do start, no matter if it is in bloom. When the 
shoots are an inch or two long, cut and make into hay, 
no matter how much or how little bloom there may be. 
The stage of bloom is no certain index of proper time 
to cut alfalfa in the East, if it is anywhere. The shoots 
at the base of the stems are unfailing as telling the in- 
ternal condition of the plant, its vigor and readiness to 
send out new and vigorous growth. If one lets it stand 
long after these shoots appear, one will be in danger of 
cutting them off, and the leaves will have fallen from 
the stems, leaving very hard, woody hay. I. D. O'Don- 
nell of the Yellowstone Valley cuts down 400 acres at 
one dash when the right time arrives, so as to keep his 
alfalfa always in full vigor: 

Making Alfalfa Hay. — The making of alfalfa hay is 
an art seldom learned. Most men are content to allow 
the sun to dry the stuff till it is crisp and brittle, then 
rake it, leaving the earth green with leaves, the best part 
of the hay lost. Alfalfa leaves have been proved by the 
Nebraska station to be worth pound for pound a little 
more than wheat middlings, so it is clear that one can 
not afford to leave them scattered over the field. The 
right method is to rake the hay while it is yet tough 
enough to hold its leaves, making the windrows small 
so that it may go on drying somewhat in that condi- 
tion. Afterward it may be laid up in small cocks, laid 
high enough to put enough hay together so that a rain 
will not penetrate through, and narrow enough to let 



236 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

the air do a good deal of drying. In these cocks the 
hay will often finish its drying perfectly. Often it is 
wise to open them during the heat of the. next day after 
cocking, and let them lie in about six flakes exposed for 
a time to sun and air. If very damp it may be turned 
once and then hurried into the barn or rick. It must not 
be allowed to remain in the cock too long, else the 
alfalfa below will turn white. This method is cheaper 
than it sounds; men trained to the work will cock hay 
astonishingly fast and once in the cock it defies most 
weathers, especially if cocked green, as advised, because 
then the stems droop so as to turn off water from the 
clouds. 

Use of Hayloaders. — Because labor is so hard to get, 
men find the hayloader a profitable help. It is not so 
safe to use with alfalfa as with other hays, but if used 
intelligently little loss may follow. One should have a 
side-delivery rake, turning the hay over lightly and loose- 
ly, into long, smallish windrows; then after they have 
sunned somewhat more, follow with the hayloader and 
with no great loss put the hay on the wagon. 

How Dry Must Alfalfa Hay Bef — If one is placing 
only two or three tons in a mow one must have the hay 
dry, else there will be often a disagreeable dusty mould 
appear. If one is placing 50 tons, more or less, together, 
one can have it more moist, since the heat evolved in 
curing will destroy the mould germs. Our test is to take 
a wisp of the dampest of the hay and twist it as hard 
as we can. If moisture exudes, the hay will likely spoil 
in the mow; so we dry it further before storing. If no 
moisture can be seen, even though it feels tough, we 



VALUE OF ALFALFA HAY 237 

hasten it to the mow. In general, we try to get the hay 
as dry as we can before housing. We seldom make in 
Ohio any alfalfa hay of the bright green color so com- 
monly seen in the West; but we find that animals relish 
the brown hay as well as the green, and perhaps relish 
it more. 

Value of Alfalfa Hay. — Thqre are three principal 
hay plants in the United States ; timothy, red clover 
and alfalfa. At present there is probably a good deal 
more alfalfa grown than red clover, since in 1899 the 
production of each was about the same, though of red 
clover the acreage reported by the 12th census was about 
double for clover what it was for alfalfa. The produc- 
tion stood: alfalfa, 2.5 tons per acre; red clover, 1.3 
tons; cultivated grasses (mainly timothy), i.i tons. 
Since then alfalfa has made great advance. It has passed 
the experimental stage; there are now no serious prob- 
lems of alfalfa-growing to be solved, and men are sow- 
ing it more largely than ever before, while at the same 
time the demand for the hay increases faster than the 
production. For all classes of animals it is the best for- 
age that can be grown in America, and at the same time 
it is the most efficient soil-enricher. Spillman reports 
that in Nebraska alfalfa has increased the yield of corn 
grown on sod 75 per cent. In Ohio we have repeatedly 
grown 100 bushels of corn per acre and more on alfalfa 
sod. The same land would have produced about 60 bush- 
els before it had been sown to alfalfa. In Idaho wheat 
has increased in yield from 25 to 75 bushels per acre 
after alfalfa. In California orange groves 25 years old 
show markedly where alfalfa once stood, the portion of 



238 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

the orchard on alfalfa sod producing one-third more, 
and the trees being larger and thriftier, and this despite 
the fact that the trees not on alfalfa land were given the 
more fertilizer. In Colorado on alfalfa sod more than 
i,ooo bushels of potatoes have been grown, and 113 
bushels of wheat on one acre. In Ohio it is not well to 
sow oats after alfalfa, since they will lodge, but corn 
reveling in fertility finds none too much where the alfalfa 
grew. On the other hand, it is conceivable that continual 
growing of alfalfa and taking off of all the hay, return- 
ing neither phosphorus nor potassium to the land, might 
result, after a time, in a most serious diminution of 
mineral-element fertility; therefore it is wise in all the 
eastern states steadily to add to the phosphorus supply 
of alfalfa soils and to attend to the need of potassium 
if any need there be. Rightly managed, an alfalfa field 
is a mine of fertility by which little by little a farm may 
be redeemed and made rich. If the hay is fed or pas- 
tured, if the manure is returned and phosphorus is bought 
as needed, there should be small difficulty in doubling the 
productiveness of the average farm. 

Feeding Value of Alfalfa Hay. — Alfalfa hay, cut at 
the right time, has about the same nutritive value as oats. 
It is rich enough so that it can be made into bread and 
fed to men; in truth, this has been done. It is a feed 
especially rich in protein, that material that makes the 
red flesh and blood, milk and brain and nerve tissue 
in the body. It has too much protein, in fact, for its 
fats and carbohydrates. Thus alfalfa hay alone is an 
unbalanced ration. I have been amused to see horses 
and mules running in yards with stacks of alfalfa hay 



ALFALFA AND HORSES 239 

and stacks of bright straw going from one stack to 
the other and eating alternately, balancing their own ra- 
tions in that way. It is clear that the great value of 
alfalfa hay is as a feed for milking animals, for young 
and growing animals, and as a part of the ration for work- 
ing horses. The natural complement of alfalfa is corn, 
since that is rich in fat and starch and poor in protein. 
Working horses fed alfalfa hay in moderation maintain 
splendid flesh and work well and are enduring. Corn 
fed with alfalfa hay better balances the ration than oats. 
Horses should never be overfed with alfalfa, since they 
will eat it as long as they can reach it. Idle horses may 
become *'soft" or of poor endurance when overfed on 
alfalfa hay, because it taxes the eliminative organs. 
Working horses accustomed to it endure fatigue well 
and have good wind. 

In the dairy alfalfa very nearly takes the place of wheat 
bran. Some experiments place alfalfa meal as high as 
wheat bran for milk production; other experiments indi- 
cate that it is not quite so good. The Tennessee station 
found that with ordinary alfalfa hay i^ pounds of hay 
equaled a pound of bran. It is very noticeable that cows 
fed alfalfa hay have a better look and weigh more than 
cows fed other hay with more grain. Its use seems to 
keep them in especially good health. 

Alfalfa for Sheep. — Alfalfa is the natural feed of 
sheep. Millions of sheep are wintered on alfalfa hay 
in the United States, and many thousands of lambs are 
fattened on it. It is not profitable to fatten any stock 
on alfalfa alone if grain can be procured, since alfalfa 
is too bulky and one-sided in its composition to form a 



240 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

perfect ration. Barley or corn fed with alfalfa make 
perfect lambs. For a maintenance ration the alfalfa alone 
will serve well, though even here bright straw, corn- 
stalks or wild hay may be fed in connection with good 
results. 

Alfalfa for Swine. — Hogs will eat a good deal of 
alfalfa hay during winter to their great good and health. 
If meant for hogs alfalfa hay should be early cut and 
nicely cured. It may be chopped fine and cornmeal mixed 
with it ; it may be fed as one would feed it to cattle, or it 
may be ground into meal. The relative profit of either 
practice depends on the cost of alfalfa hay. Ordinarily 
it is cheaper to waste a portion of the hay (which works 
into the manure) than to go to the expense of grinding. 
For brood sows in winter alfalfa hay is almost indispen- 
sable. Always, when feeding swine on alfalfa, a partial 
ration of grain should be fed. 

Use of Alfalfa Pasture. — Alfalfa sown for pasture 
should always be mixed with grasses, unless it is to be 
merely grazed by horses and swine. The grasses usable 
for this purpose are timothy, orchard grass and brome 
grass. Brome grass seems best for the purpose, but in 
time it will encroach on alfalfa and may weaken it. It 
yields the most and best pasturage, however. There is 
little danger of animals bloating on alfalfa pasture well 
mixed with grasses. Bloating is the one thing most to be 
feared in cows and sheep; horses and pigs seldom give 
any trouble of this kind. There are certain rules that, 
when observed, will commonly prevent bloating. Ani- 
mals should not be turned on alfalfa until it has reached 
a good height and come nearly to bloom; it should be at 



STOCK BLOATING ON ALFALFA 241 

least a foot or more high. The animals should be filled 
as full as possible with green grass or some feed that they 
like. They should be turned in at about lo o'clock in the 
morning and afterward left always on the field, not being 
taken off at night or during rains. It is when animals 
have been away from the field and become hungry that 
they eat too rapidly on return and are troubled by bloat- 
ing. For the good of the pasture it should be so wide 
that it would never be eaten close, but once or twice a 
year the mower should go over the parts not eaten and 
the cut forage made into hay. Thus treated, alfalfa is 
little injured by being pastured. Ahvays, in frosty coun- 
tries, all animals should be taken from the field before 
time of very hard frosts, and no foot should afterward 
tread upon it until growing weather of the following year. 
Not only is it bad for alfalfa to be trodden upon in cold 
weather (except in die arid West), but it is injurious to 
animals to eat frosted alfalfa. Furthermore, alfalfa is 
better to have left on it a growth of at least a foot in 
height. 

Alfalfa as a Soiling Crop. — Should one wish to get the 
utmost from one's soil, and be willing to perform the 
needed labor, one should sow alfalfa and feed animals by 
soiling. An acre of moderately good alfalfa will yield 
during the season from 20,000 to 30,000 pounds of green 
forage. A cow will consume, it is estimated, about 30 
pounds a day of alfalfa with access to some other feeds, 
grasses and perhaps a morsel of dry corn. Thus a cow 
would in a month consume about 900 to 1,000 pounds of 
alfalfa forage, the acre keeping 25 to 30 cows for a 
month. In cutting alfalfa for soiling one should manage 



242 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

to cut it as near as one can in regular rotation at the right 
time, keeping watch of the upspringing of the Httle shoots 
at the base of the stems, since to cut it before these start 
will decrease the second cutting. Once started right, one 
can mow off a certain area each day and thus keep it all 
in full vigor. It is better for alfalfa to be allowed to 
stand a few days too long than to be cut off too soon. 
The best way to soil cows is to have near the alfalfa field 
a pasture of bluegrass, brome grass or some other good 
pasture grass with large movable racks into which the 
green forage may be put. Thus the animals may largely 
balance their rations as nature suggests to them. Thus, 
also, the pasture is fed by the droppings of the animals, 
and by frequent changes of location with the racks no 
manure will ever be hauled. I have fed beef cattle in 
this manner with fine results. They had also a daily 
ration of ears of corn. 

How Many Cuttings of Alfalfa? — Depending on the 
latitude, from 2 to 6 or more cuttings are taken in the 
United States. I believe, however, that alfalfa is often 
cut too frequently and that in our latitude on the 40th 
parallel (running through Columbus, O., Indianapolis, 
Ind., and northern Missouri and the border between Kan- 
sas and Nebraska) it is really better to cut three times 
than oftener. Commonly alfalfa here will be ready to 
cut by June i, and again by July 10; afterward it does 
not come on so rapidly, unless the season proves very 
favorable. The third cutting will be delayed till about 
the last of August. Delays in doing the work caused by 
unfavorable weather may prolong these dates consider- 
ably. I should never cut alfalfa in our latitude in Oc- 



INVIGORATION FROM MOWING 243 

tober, unless I wished to weaken the roots. However, if 
one can do the work promptly, one can take off 4 cuttings, 
and we have frequently done so, but 3 are nearer che 
average, and it will not always be ready to cut by June. 
In the South it may in the Gulf States be ready to cut 
in March or April, and then of course one can hardly 
avoid cutting it 5, 6 or more times. 

Alfalfa Must Be Mown to Invigorate It. — In humid 
lands alfalfa will not live long unless it is periodically 
cut. After it has grown a little while it ceases to be 
vigorous, the leaves begin to fall and it is at a standstill 
until it is mown ; after which it at once starts into vigor- 
ous growth again. Sometimes when it is time to cut 
alfalfa the growth may be insignificant, and one not 
knowing the habit of the plant might neglect to cut it, 
thinking it not worth while. The truth is, however, it 
will hardly start into growth at all until it is cut off. I 
have mowed off in late July a short growth of alfalfa 
plants hardly w^orth the raking, and had at once a vigor- 
ous growth start up that made much more than a ton to 
the acre in 40 days. The reason for all this is a mystery 
past finding out, but let the reader impress here upon 
his memory once and forever that alfalfa should never 
be cut before the shoots at the base of the stems have 
indicated that it is ready, nor ever let it stand past their 
coming or about 40 days' grow^th, no matter if it is 
no more than 6" high. 

As I write this we have a field of 40 acres of perfectly 
healthy alfalfa sown in April (it is now August) that 
has been once cut with the barley nurse-crop, is now no 
miore than 6" to 8" tall and is beginning to bloom. It 



244 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

has set the buds at the base of the stems,, too, and must 
be mown off or it will make little more growth this year ; 
so, though it is a disappointment not to get our customary 
crop of hay the year of sowing, we shall start the mowers 
soon and cut it as close to the earth as we can, knowing 
that it will at once start out vigorously and thus make 
strong root for winter. Though it might make a good 
hay crop in late September, we shall hardly cut it then, 
depending on its yielding us next year all the more for 
having been treated generously this. 

How Long Does Alfalfa Endure? — I have seen alfalfa 
fields that had endured in good thrift for 40 years or 
more. These fields were in the Southwest, on rich, deep, 
dry soil where alfalfa roots could penetrate for 30' or 
more. The stand was thin, but each plant was like a 
small tree stump, and the roots like great gnarled stubs of 
oak fully 2" to 3" in diameter. Such facts as these have 
led men to teach that alfalfa will endure forever. In east- 
ern soils and under an eastern climate it will do no such 
thing. It is commonly at its best the second or third year 
after sowing, and then declines steadily in health and pro- 
ductiveness. To get the most good from growing 
alfalfa one should plow it up before it gets thin and is 
displaced by grasses. We commonly let it stand three 
or four years ; though our practice was to leave it much 
longer, we now see the greater profit in plowing the 
field as soon as it begins to decline, not trying to resow 
or nurse it, but planting to corn, manuring the land for 
corn a second year, then resowing to alfalfa again. 
Thus managed, we keep our soil always at near the 
height of its production. 



VARIETIES OF ALFALFA 245 

Inoculating in Expectation of Solving. — I have given 
much space to the subject of alfalfa because it has en- 
grossed my thought for many years, and because it 
seems to me assured that good farmers everywhere will 
desire to grow it. A man, for example, sufficiently lib- 
eral to possess and read this book is almost sure to de- 
sire to grow alfalfa. It is well for him to begin to 
get inoculation into his soil in advance of the time when 
he will sow alfalfa. This he can do by simply sowing 
alfalfa seed with his red clover each spring. He should 
first make the land dry enough for clover and alfalfa. 
If it is sour lime it; afterward he may simply mix in say 
TO pounds of alfalfa seed with each lOO pounds of 
clover seed sown and sow the clover, preferably in 
April, by harrowing the land and covering the seed. 
Thus sown a fine sprinkling of alfalfa all over the land 
will result, and nature Avill attend to the inoculation, 
so that in a few years when he is ready to sow to alfalfa 
alone, the land will be ready for it. The growth of 
alfalfa will also be a good index to the state of prepared- 
ness of the land. 

Varieties of Alfalfa. — There are innumerable vari- 
eties of alfalfa, but only a few have been isolated, and 
the seed is on the market. At present there is more use 
in getting seed from certain regions than there is in seek- 
ing special varieties. For example, seed from France 
thrives in the central states; seed from Algeria (im- 
ported through France) is not hardy. Seed from Kan- 
sas, Nebraska and Montana is hardy all over the eastern 
and central states, and is the best supply available now. 
Seed from Arizona is not hardy in Nebraska, but thrives 



246 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

in Louisiana. There are also special varieties adapted 
to special areas. Among these are the new varieties 
brought from Siberia by Prof. N. E. Hansen, the Tur- 
kestan variety brought earlier by him and now in use in 
the drier parts of the cold Northwest, and the so-called 
"Grimm" alfalfa, which first came to our notice as grown 
by German farmers in Minnesota. This Grimm alfalfa 
is especially hardy and productive and adapted to the 
lands and climates of the Dakotas, parts of Montana 
and the British provinces. 

Irrigation of Alfalfa. — One can get at the ground- 
work of the science of irrigating alfalfa if one will con- 
sider certain basal truths. First, alfalfa revels in moist 
soil and dies in wet soil; next, standing water on alfalfa 
in hot weather soon scalds the crowns and kills it; then, 
alfalfa covered with ice in winter is destroyed. Where 
it is practical, the best system of irrigating alfalfa is by 
the furrow method. In this method furrows rather deep 
and sharply defined are made across the field, running 
right down the slopes, as a usual thing, and near enough 
together so that the water will "sub" or soak through 
from side to side. After the seed is sown (commonly 
this is done before making the furrows, which are made 
by special machines built for the purpose that open 4 or 
more furrows at one time) one turns in water which is 
allowed to flow in very gentle streams down the fur- 
rows till the soil is thoroughly soaked, and the seed 
germinated and above ground. Afterward, the alfalfa 
is watered several times as it may seem to need feed dur- 
ing the summer. In the second year there will be small 
danger of washing, and large streams may be turned 



IRRIGATING ALFALFA 247 

out on the highest points along the head ditch and 
allowed to spread and flood over all the ground. 

The second system is by the contour or check plan. 
Here little levees of earth are raised across the field, each 
one on a contour or level line and each one so placed that 
it will back the water up to the foot of the contour 
above. By means of these contours the field is made into 
a series of shallow ponds and all the surface is covered. 
This is the almost universal plan followed in Mexico and 
California. It is adapted to very level land. The fur- 
row system applies to land having a strong slope. Once 
alfalfa is established and water is available, the thought 
is to keep it wet enough to have it growing vigorously, 
and not wet enough to scald it or drown it. Soils that 
are open, gravelly and pervious are best for irrigating, 
since they can not be filled with water to the point of 
drowning the roots. When water is abundant one can 
get more crops than if it is scanty. It is well to irrigate 
just before cutting and again within a week afterward. 
To put water on quickly and take it off quickly is the 
safe rule, but one must be governed by the permeability 
of the soil. In winter time in arid regions one must 
see to it that the soil is moist, else one's alfalfa will 
winterkill. 

'^Alfalfa Farming in America." — There are many 
points that the reader should know about alfalfa-growing 
— so many that I worked for several years putting them 
into a book with the title quoted. Interested readers 
are referred to that book for further details, since to 
give more space here to this queen of meadow plants 
would be to neglect its first plan ; that is, to give a com- 



248 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

prehensive account of the care of meadows and pastures, 
most of which are not today of alfalfa. 

Meadow foxtail {Alopecurus pratensis L.) — This 
grass is closely related to timothy, for which it may be 
mistaken, although it blooms fully a month earlier, its 
stems are not so tall, its heads are shorter and more 
ovoid. According to Hunt, meadow foxtail makes a 
good sod in its proper habitat. Stems are few, i' to 3' 
high, and sparingly furnished with leaves. The leaves 
are broad, long, thin, and grow rapidly when cut or eaten 
by live stock. Seed is sparingly produced and therefore 
expensive. It is generally of poor vitality and hence a 
good stand is seldom obtained, at least in America. The 
number of seeds per pound is 1,216,000. All commercial 
seed is imported. 

Lamson says : "It grows naturally on rather superior 
soils of medium texture, and constitutes the greater por- 
tion of many of the richer, natural pastures of Britain. 
It requires two or three years after sowing to arrive at 
full maturity and, therefore, it is not suitable for alter- 
nate husbandry." Hackel states that it is especially 
adapted to wet meadows. Meadow foxtail is distinctly 
a pasture grass, being one of the earliest grasses to start 
in the spring. On rich soils it may be tried in mixtures 
for permanent pastures at the rate of i pound of seed to 
the acre. 

Blue Joint (Calamagrostis Canadensis). — Once much 
of the open land of eastern America was more or less 
covered with this fine, tall, nutritious grass. It made 
the typical grass of the moister regions of eastern 
America extending well up into Canada. It made a 



DISTRIBUTION OF BLUE JOINT 



249 




Bluejoint Grass (Deyenxia—Calamagrrostis— Canadensis). 



250 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

dense, tough sod hard to break and where it grew great 
crops followed. It is now seen occasionally in moist 
places or by roadsides. It grows frequently 6' high and 
if cut early makes hay superior to timothy. The yield is 
very good and the grass is permanent. I should expect 
a well-set meadow of this grass to mow 3 tons or more 
to the acre. It is well worth cultivating except that the 
seed are small and not easy to get, and the grass is slowly 
established. For permanent meadow in moist land in- 
clined to be wet I know of no better grass than this. 
Fowl Meadow Grass (Poa serotina). — This is a typi- 
cal New England grass and is in use in low meadows 
in Massachusetts and other eastern states. Prof. Beal 
says : "It flowers about the same time as timothy. It 
makes a soft, pliable hay of excellent quality. The stems 
in damp weather branch at the lower joints and thus 
the grass is inclined to spread. On account of the large 
top and the slender stem this grass when sown alone is 
rather inclined to lodge. This is one reason for growing 
it with stiffer grasses, such as redtop. Like Poa com- 
pressa, or wire grass, it flowers rather late, has a dark 
green stem which remains green and nutritious a long 
time after the plant has gone to seed. It does not spread 
by rootstalks like bluegrass. It may be mown late and 
will yet make nutritious hay." This grass has not made 
progress elsewhere than in New England. It is some- 
what difficult to get good seed. It will endure being 
overflow^ed more than other grasses. A Vermont sta- 
tion bulletin says : "It is one of the most valuable of 
our native grasses, being especially adapted to wet, over- 
flowed intervale land where the usual hay grasses and 



FOWL MEADOW GRASS 



251 




Fowl Meadow Grass (Poa Serotina). 



252 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

clovers are liable to be killed by standing water. Redtop 
and alsike clover are capable of enduring a wetter soil 
than timothy and red clover, but fowl meadow grass will 
thrive best in soil where even redtop and alsike soon 
kill out. There are many acres in Vermont now occupied 
by sedges and rushes where fowl meadow grass would 
grow well if introduced. Seedsmen do not carry good 
seeds of this grass btit it may be easily harvested from 
the wild grass in almost any town in Vermont, provided 
one knows the grass when one sees it." 

CARE OF MEADOWS AND PASTURES. 

"Now the blades of grass thrust keenly through the soil, burn- 
ished and glistening. It is as if spring marched into the land with 
an army with banners. Grass is the most common and least 
salient of the phases of nature. It does not lift itself into the vision 
like the forest. It does not offer an everchanging panorama like 
the sky. It has no dramatic violence like the sea. Yet nothing 
giv'^es a deeper sense of the overwhelming power of nature than 
the silent upgushing of this rich, spreading tide of green. The 
power that swings the suns in a leash is not mightier than this 
which slowly and secretly urges the grass into the upper air. 
Indeed, is it not the same power? There is not a nobler symbol 
in nature of the mystery of renewal, the m5^stery of life, than 
the coming of the grass. To find a nobler we must look into the 
soul of man. Only there in its struggle, through failure and un- 
conquerable aspiration, toward perfection does the great mystery 
take on a loftier beauty." 

TREATMENT OF MEADOWS AND PASTURES. 

Adequately to treat the subject of making a soil right 
and seeding it to clovers and grasses, then caring for the 
plants after I had them, would fill a farm library, so one 
can do little at getting it all into the space left in this 



RICH SOILS FOR MEADOWS 253 

book. We must make a beginning somewhere, however, 
so here at the soil is a good place to set in. 

Give the Meadow Your Best Soil. — One can till a 
rather infertile and hard soil and get fair returns from 
it because by tillage one can hold its moisture and lib- 
erate all the plant food there is; but when one seeds it 
down to meadow or pasture the tillage ceases, commonly, 
and there is no way of conserving moisture or creating it 
unless irrigation is available. It pays well to farm in 
this way; to till land as thoroughly as one can, steadily 
draining and enriching and getting it into the highest 
state of productivity, all with the one thought toward a 
final end — to get it at last laid down in meadow or pas- 
ture. There is absolutely no doubt that the greatest 
profit can come from the meadow some day, when things 
have been made right and the grasses and clovers are 
at home. Corn, prodigious though it is, will yield less 
of food for beast, and, by transfusion, for man, than 
will alfalfa. Many an acre of Virginia bluegrass is pro- 
ducing more beef or mutton or horseflesh than the aver- 
age acre of Illinois could possibly produce. In the Old 
World men recognize this truth and lay down to per- 
manent grass or meadows of a few years their best land, 
meantime keeping under the plow lands not strong 
enough to be profitable under other treatment. True, 
there are lands too rough, steep, rocky or infertile for 
cultivation, and these may be laid down to permanent 
pasture or devoted to forestry, or a combination of the 
two secured, and from such land profit may come; yet 
in the laying down to grass of the best lands will come 
the greatest profits. Furthermore, the men who steadily 



254 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

plan their farm practices toward fulfillment of a scheme 
that will end in increasingly large areas of meadow and 
pasture in the height of productivity, and feed to prof- 
itable types of animals, will always be the men who will 
steadily grow richer along with their grassy fields, and 
will be recognized, too, wherever they may be, as men 
of substance and reliability, pillars in society and lead- 
ers in their counties. There are curious psychological 
reasons for this that we have not time now to consider. 
Getting Land Ready for Grass. — I hope I may be per- 
mitted here to use the word "grass" in the farmer's 
acceptance of the term to include grasses and clovers 
grown in meadow or pasture, since it will be convenient 
so to use it, and I have good scriptural warrant for so 
doing. What type of soil will give us best returns in 
grass, either for meadow or pasture ? Let us briefly con- 
sider the soil. An amazing thing it is to see how almost 
any soil is covered with plants, one nearly as densely 
as another, and when one comes to examine closely, one 
finds that on certain soil types one class of plants is found 
and on another soil type a quite different class of plants. 
For example, he will find walnut trees and bur oaks, 
ash and hickory for timber and when the land is cleared 
it will set to white clover and bluegrass. It will grow 
strong timothy and red clover, wheat, oats or corn. 
Under that soil there lies limestone, be well assured, 
and mixed through the soil is quite a good deal of car- 
bonate of lime. Near by there may be seen another soil 
type ; the trees will be beech and chestnut, pine and hem- 
lock, sour gum and white oak. When this land is cleared 
it may set to redtop or Canada bluegrass, or perhaps 



SHEEP IMPROVE GRASS LANDS 



255 




256 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

no grass will naturally set there at all, and of the clovers 
alsike thrives best. If ferns and mosses come up in the 
field it grows steadily poorer and poorer because the 
clovers do not thrive, and so there is no nitrogen being 
stored from the wealth in the air. If one will take pains 
to examine that soil, one will find it made from material 
deficient in carbonate of lime and, most likely, deficient 
also in phosphorus, since lime and phosphorus often go 
hand in hand. The plain fact is that useful plants, the 
best in nature, love good soils just as good men choose 
to live in fertile lands. One can find a wealth of growth 
in an infertile soil but it will be growth of wild things 
that are not useful to man. To the intending land-buyer 
I urge, "Buy a farm in a region of rich soils; there you 
will find gathering the best men, the best animals will 
come from that soil and the best customs will develop 
there. Poor soils are never sold as cheaply in compari- 
son with good soils as they deserve." However, one may 
say to me, "But I own my farm ; it is not very fertile, I 
admit ; what may I do to make it good ? I also wish good 
meadows and pastures and fields of grain." 

Importance of Drainage. — First, in the natural steps of 
development I should put drainage. Lead away surplus 
soil waters. A living soil has moisture through it, but 
also air in it all the time. Only inferior grasses, and no 
clovers, grow in saturated soils. Begin then by draining, 
and the best sort of drainage is underdrainage with 
tiles. Drainage alone will work wonders in a soil and 
the class and character of vegetation that covers It. Not 
only do better grasses grow on drained soils, but ani- 
mals like them better. There is no doubt more sweet- 



DRAINING GRASS LANDS 257 

ness in grass grown on drained soil than in grass grow- 
ing on wet land. I have seen wonders done in Eng- 
land and Scotland by drainage; there, at least, tiles were 
the foundation of soil improvement. I have seen heaths 
covered over w^ith little worthless heather, barren of 
grasses or clovers, first deeply drained with tiles, then 
limed and enriched and afterwards made into as splen- 
did meadows as I have ever seen. Remember always 
that clovers are the natural allies of grasses, and clovers 
thrive with their roots in soil in which there is air as 
well as moisture, since in no other soil can their roots 
bear the nodules which carry the bacteria that gather 
nitrogen from the air and thus enrich the soil for them- 
selves and for their companion grasses. In any scheme 
of soil improvement then let drainage go first. 

Depth to Undcrdrain. — Drains laid deep do most good. 
Here one must consider soil types and go as one must. 
Sometimes one can not lay tile work deeper than 30"; 
this depth will, indeed, give good results with grasses, 
but not so good with clovers. I have laid them at all 
depths from 2 to 12', and now^ we lay them, as nearly 
as possible, 4' deep. In draining very rich soil that is 
to bear pasture grass alone, however, it may be that 
shallower drains will give better results; thus, in Hol- 
land, I have observed that men seek to keep the water 
level about 16" below the surface of the soil. Indeed 
they often have their ditches so arranged that they can 
pump water into them so that it will seep back into the 
land and keep it moist in times of drouth. That land, 
however, seems unnaturally rich, and some unexplained 
plan of nature keeps it filled with nitrogen. No doubt 



258 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

the feeding of cattle thereon, the careful husbanding of 
manures, the steady purchasing of foodstuffs to be fed 
in winter supplementing the grass, and the saving and 
use of liquid manures, may all help account for this 
maintenance of fertility with no great depth of soil free 
from water saturation. Then there are in that land cer- 
tain clovers, both red and white, that do not need great 
depth of root; they grow well intermixed with the 
grasses, and all help to keep the soil literally as "rich as 
mud." In America under ordinary conditions I am sure 
that it is wise to drain as deeply as one well can; in 
Scotland and England I found glorious meadow land 
drained as perfectly as possible to depths of from 4' to 7'. 

Deep Drainage Prevents Effects of Drouth. — Curi- 
ously enough, deeply-drained land suffers less from 
drouth than the more shallow-drained, the reason being 
that, in the deeply-drained soil, roots learn to feed down 
to great depths. I have seen barley roots penetrate 
nearly 10' in three months' growing, and all grasses root 
more deeply than we suppose. The fine fibrous feeding 
roots go far down if there is anything worth going after, 
but they never go into standing water; they drink the 
water that is called film moisture only. If we had con- 
ditions of soil and climate like the Hollanders, we could 
do no better than imitate their water meadows and pas- 
tures, but except along tidal flats and in a few isolated 
regions we can not so imitate, and must drain and pre- 
pare crops to feed and forage deep and wide during 
our seasons of heat and drouth. 

Need of Carbonate of Lime. — Rich and productive 
soils everywhere are those which have enough carbonate 



GRASS MAKES WOOL AND MUTTON 



259 




260 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

of lime in them. The function of carbonate of Hme is 
well described by a writer signing himself "Robert John- 
son" in ''Hoard's Dairyman." His article follows: 

"Out in Idaho is a very wide desert plain. For unnumbered thou- 
sands of years it has borne only stunted sage brush, tufts of scat- 
tered grass, coyotes and jack rabbits. Far below the plain, in a 
ragged rock hewn canyon, flowed Snake River. The desert plain 
was silent, untenanted save in winter time when snow made it 
possible for sheep and cattle to come out upon it and nibble the 
bunch grass. Men could not come there to live because no man alone 
nor neighborhood of men could dam mighty Snake River and take 
out its water, life giving though all men knew that water to be. The 
desert waited. Day came at last when one man crept down the preci- 
pices that walled in the river and in a tiny widening of the canyon he 
found a rift of soil and above it a spring. He stayed there to plant 
that soil and the alfalfa, peaches, apples, prunes thereof were splen- 
did. Then this man came from his hidden oasis and told other men 
with gold and venturous blood of the land of silence, the wide 
plain, the prisoned river. Returning the men of gold came with 
him and together they traveled far over the silent land. Next 
came the engineers squinting long through shining instrument of 
brass, next armies of men with herds of horses ; roads were made, 
villages of tents and board shacks sprung up, canals were dug 
across the plain, canals large enough to float any Atlantic steam- 
ship, lacking only in depth. Other armies of men pushed out 
perilously on the glassy rocks at the brink of waterfalls and with 
cement made piers and bridges and then with gates let down, the 
astonished river found itself trapped, dammed, made to flow away 
from its canyon into new canals. Content it crept their winding 
lengths, it penetrated quietly every lateral, every ditch ; it spread 
itself out smiling over the land in tiny furrows. Thus was a river 
lost and came to be only moisture of an irrigated plain so wide that 
no man could see across it. 

"Thus was regained Paradise, land of orchards and meadows. 
Then came men from many lands, men with plows and harrows, 
with hoes and shovels, men driving rumbling wagons, building tiny 
houses of boards, bringing women and many children, planting 
trees of poplar, apple and peach. Thus was tamed and made into 
farms and orchards and gardens the mighty desert, wild and drouth 



GRASS LANDS IN IDAHO 261 

stricken desert, of Idaho on either side of winding Snake River. 
Thereon sit many villages, towns and even cities, while long lines of 
towering poplars reach up to proclaim the tale of a land made glad. 
And yet, curiously enough, the land smiled doubtfully at first when 
water was turned on. Wheat made only about 20 bushels to the 
acre, potatoes no more than 100 bushels. These rewards, ample 
enough in Ohio or Pennsylvania, were quite inadequate in the far 
off desert. Men freely predicted that it was a mistake settling the 
desert plain, that the millions of dollars thrown into the river and 
its canals would be forever sunken and lost, that the land was too 
poor to make farming profitable. Chemists examined the soil and 
learned that it was rich in phosphorus, rich in potash, made indeed 
from volcanic ash and decayed lava rocks, but that it had in it little 
nitrogen. Now nitrogen is the life of soils, the quickening wine 
that invigorates plants. 

"Nitrogen is the essential element in protein. Soils nearly every- 
where are starving for nitrogen, so are the world's poor, both man 
and beast. Nitrogen comes from the deserts of Chili, from blood 
of beast, a little from nitrogen factories in Norway where the 
electric furnaces take apart the air and make captive that elusive 
element. So these farmers on Idaho's plains could have brought 
nitrate of soda from South America or bought dried blood from 
Chicago, only that the crops harvested would not have repaid that 
price and the great length of travel. Clearly the land was doomed 
and the settlers thereof to poverty and unprofitable toil, unless 
some home source of nitrogen could be found. Not that the farmers 
themselves knew clearly what was wrong, to them it was only that 
'The derned land is poor.' Whether it had lack of phosphorus, 
potash, nitrogen or what not, they knew not. 

"There was another curious thing about that soil that we have not 
considered; it had in it four percent of carbonate of lime. That is 
a most extraordinary amount of lime for an American soil, its origin 
from volcanic ash, from decayed lava rock gave it the lime. Soils 
of Maryland or New York have in them usually not one-tenth 
that much lime, maybe not one-fiftieth as much. When wheat did 
not seem profitable or potatoes, some sowed alfalfa. The alfalfa 
grew gloriously after a time. At first it sometimes failed to 
grow well, but presently some miracle happened and it grew like 
Jonah's gourd. That was when bacteria got to work. Men cut it 
three or four times during the summer and harvested as much as 



262 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

6 to 10 tons of hay to the acre. Afterward some plowed their 
alfalfa fields and planted them to wheat, to potatoes. Herein was 
seen a miracle, the wheat yielded as much as 75 bushels to the acre 
and the potatoes 600 bushels. There was now nothing wrong in the 
soil, it was complete in its fertility and producing power. Whence 
came this increase? What had happened to that soil? 

"What had happened was simply one of God's miracles, one of 
the things that God had planned when He made the world, no doubt. 
Nitrogen He knew must be in soils, must be in foods, the air was 
full of it but not in such form that plants could absorb it, so the 
legumes, the clovers, were planned to store soils with nitrogen. 
Alfalfa is a clover, a vigorous, long-living clover. Alfalfa leaves 
are as unable to absorb nitrogen as are the leaves of other plants, 
so were designed little living organisms called bacteria, especially 
fitted to digest the nitrogen that is in the air — digest it and assimilate 
it and dymg to turn it over to the plants. So the marvelous produc- 
tivity of the Idaho desert soils is based on their large content of 
carbonate of lime, that and the fact that they are permeable by water 
and air and have enough phosphorus, potash and other plant foods. 

"Those farms of Idaho are sure of a splendid destiny. They are 
rich in mineral elements of fertility and because of that the alfalfa 
can for thousands of years be counted on to bring to them their 
nitrogen. One knows well that there will ever be a land of fertile 
fields and great crops in that wide, western valley, that never fear 
of hunger will be felt between those ranges of snow-capped moun- 
tains as long as the river flows peacefully through canals and loses 
itself in cool depths of alfalfa or wheat or between rows of apple 
trees, pink and white with bloom or gleaming red with apples in 
October. Seventy-five bushels of wheat to the acre grow in Idaho, 
600 of potatoes, while in the eastern states wheat yields from 8 to 
20 bushels and potatoes in good years up to 150 bushels. Near 2,000 
miles of railway haul to bring food from Idaho to New York, and 
within driving distance of New York, Philadelphia, Baltimore and 
Washington one finds abandoned fields growing up to pines and 
bushes! Why do we not develop fields near at home? To irrigate 
that land in Idaho costs from $50 to $100 per acre, here are fields 
on which God makes rain fall in gentle showers all through the 
crop season. What is wrong in the East? 

"First, let me say it is not the men that are wrong. They are 
as good men who inhabit the infertile farms of the East as the men 



LIME AND SOILS 263 

who live on Idaho's plains. The chief difference is that the strong, 
prudent, daring ones have gone to people the West. Those who re- 
mained at home remained to combat a stubborn soil fact. 

"Wherever men have found a soil strong in carbonate of lime 
they have found a soil rich and a soil easily kept rich. All the great 
and enduring civilizations in the world have been built up on soils 
that had an alkaline reaction because of their abundance of carbonate 
of lime. Civilizations that did not endure were founded on soils 
that were sour. Men came from food, after all. Food comes from 
fertile soils. Soils are fertile in proportion to their being alive, to 
their having life-giving bacteria in them. These bacteria most 
abound where there is much carbonate of lime. In France large use 
is made of lime and the result is a fertility and bloom and har- 
vest unknown in America. In France, in summer one sees wide 
stretches of blooming fields of clover, alfalfa and sainfoin. Lime 
makes these things grow. They in turn enrich the soil and make it 
ready for wheat. Thus are the people of France fed from the 
stones. Thus are fields in France, that thousands of years ago were 
cultivated fields, today richer than any we find in eastern America, 
where the land has not been plowed yet for two centuries. 

"Have we no fields, then, that have been limed in the East to 
show what results might follow? Prof E. B. Voorhees on well- 
limed land in New Jersey grew last year more than 7 tons of 
alfalfa on one acre. The land is exactly similar to what other Jer- 
seymen call poor, and prove to be unproductive. On that alfalfa 
field he could now grow 100 bushels of corn or 50 bushels of wheat. 
Would it not do something to relieve the hunger in eastern cities, 
were there a million such fields along the Atlantic Seaboard? Would 
that not reduce much the cost of living? In Pennsylvania, within 
driving distance of Philadelphia, lives Wayne MacVeagh. Older 
men will remember that he was once Attorney-General when Gar- 
field was President. MacVeagh farms well. Loving his soil, he 
feeds it liberally; the cattle of this man are good. Wishing then 
to provide yet better forage for his animals, MacVeagh sowed 
alfalfa but the alfalfa throve not. Learning that alfalfa needs car- 
bonate of lime he spread that over his field and harrowed it to mix 
it with the soil. He did as God did when He made the soils, taking 
ground raw limestone rocks and mixing the dust through the soil. 
Full six tons to each acre he did spread. Then also he put on phos- 
phorus, and with that he waited. Soon a miracle appeared in that 



264 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

field; the alfalfa that had been yellow, sickly and in despair became 
all at once alive, bright green, full of thrift and vigor. It produced 
several very heavy crops of hay ; it beautified the hillside ; it enriched 
the soil; it made the old man see a vision and caused him to plan 
wisely and well to cover yet more fields with lime, mother of alfalfa; 
to cover more fields with alfalfa, to better feed his cows and better 
feed his land. Carbonate of lime is the key, then, that unlocks the 
strong door leading to soil enrichment in the East. 

"Would you hear another story? There lived in California a 
man named J. F. Jack. This man knew of ranching and irrigation, 
of alfalfa, oranges and farming. He had never lived in the East. 
Because he wondered that God out of His goodness made it to rain 
on the eastern farms while He left the western farms dry, Mr. Jack 
went to Virginia to study the strange situation. At that time he 
did not know that the long drouth of the West, enduring for un- 
numbered centuries, had saved for them their carbonate of lime; he 
did not know that eastern soils are starved for it. Because he liked 
the people of Virginia, Mr. Jack bought a great plantation on the 
Rappahannock River. There he essayed to make alfalfa grow and 
at first it would not grow. Then he took counsel with wise men in 
the Department of Agriculture and they told him of the lime need of 
his soil and how it was famished for humus and hungry for phos- 
phorus. He brought lime, crimson clover followed, that turned un- 
der made humus and alfalfa was sown. Last year from 300 acres 
of once worn-out land, Mr. Jack harvested 1200 tons of alfalfa hay. 
Afterward he had a shipload of ground limestone brought to his 
wharf and in one summer 700 tons more of the life-giving carbonate 
of lime went out to his soil to make ready more acres for alfalfa. 
Some day there one will see a thousand acres in one glorious alfalfa 
field, a most hopeful thing for old Virginia, a thing that should 
make Virginia farmers, young and old, think long and well and take 
new heart. 

"Here is fresh field for exploitation. In Jersey are thousands of 
acres of land turned out to pines. The land is termed poor, and 
they say well who call it poor. It has in it no life-giving carbonate 
of lime and little of any other element of fertility. No man can 
now till that land and make it pay. Yet from those barren fields 
one can drive with two horses and a farm wagon to the crowded 
streets of Philadelphia or New York. Prof. Voorhees has shown 
that this land can easily be redeemed. Here lies the way. First 



COST OF LIMESTONE 265 

carbonate of lime enough to take away the sourness of the land and 
make it sweet instead. Next some good growth on the land to turn 
under and make life in the soil. Crimson clover or cowpeas will do 
that. Then alfalfa or red clover, and after these crops the stubble 
when plowed will grow gardens or potatoes or corn. True, one must 
buy phosphorus; that costs not much when the lime is in the soil, 
for a pound of phosphorus will last as long on land with lime in it 
as 5 pounds will when the land is lime-hungry. In Jersey are great 
mountains of limestone rock. Crushers there are and grinders ready 
made to powder this rock and railways ready to take it to the soil. 
It is almost parallel to the story of Idaho; there flowed the Snake 
River in its deep canyon, doing no manner of good to herb or tree. 
There came strong men and turned Snake River out to water 
the fields. Here lie solemn mountains rich at heart with priceless 
carbonate of lime; near by are barren fields suffering for this one 
thing. Now should men come to grind this lime and make channels 
to carry it out to the fields? If men with gold wished they could 
indeed buy these Jersey lands for any song and fill them with lime, 
sow them to alfalfa, make them rich and beautiful and sell them 
again to farmers who would use them to make food for the markets 
of our cities. It is a work that should belong to strong men, for the 
need of such lime is great, ten full tons of ground and unburned 
lime dust would be none too much for an acre of hungry land, and 
men with means could own their own railway cars and grinders and 
put the stuff out for a small price and in large amounts. 

"Strange it is, but in Illinois, state of rich soils, most has been 
done in this endeavor. There Dr. Cyril G. Hopkins has persuaded 
his state to set convicts to grinding limestone in the penitentiary at 
Menard. There the men grind the stone and load it on cars, and the 
state sells it to the farmers for 65 cents a ton, and the railways, 
wishing to make farms more productive so that they in turn might 
have the freight to haul, do haul these cars of stone dust a mile for 
20 cents, each car laden with 40 tons of ground limestone. 

"It is a wonderful thought, is it not, that men leave their land near 
eastern cities, crowded with hungry people willing and able to pay 
their price — leave these old states and migrate to the arid West, 
thousands of miles from their customers and there expend more 
money to get water on the land so that they may grow crops to feed 
the people of the eastern cities than they would have had to expend 
on their old acres near those cities in putting carbonate of lime on 



266 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

their fields, putting alfalfa or clover there, getting fertility there so 
that they could have grown bounteous crops right at their hungry 
customers' doors ! It will take less money to make acres fertile in 
Jersey, Virginia and New York than it will to water other acres 
already fertile but arid in the far off West." 

In Maryland one sees shell roads built through soils 
so sandy that they are half barren. Where the wheels 
grind up the shells into dust and the dust is washed 
down over the soil, bluegrass and white clover spring 
up and a good sod is made. Bear in mind that there 
is a good deal of horse manure left there besides the 
carbonate of lime. The ground shells^ alone might not 
have done and probably would not have done the work. 
In Alabama on sandy coast land there is growing fine 
alfalfa, the work of carbonate of lime applied liber- 
ally. In Florida the same story is told, and in truth 
wherever man has used carbonate of lime with intelli- 
gence he has had meadow or pasture to show for it. 

Further, carbonate of lime changes the character, even 
the species and varieties, of grasses and clovers growing 
on a soil. When it is deficient one sees broom sedge 
(not a good grass), redtop, Canada bluegrass and many 
other grasses of inferior value. With the balance of 
carbonate of lime restored, the soil is made sweet, clovers 
enrich it and the broom sedge disappears, as do the red- 
top and Canada bluegrass and are replaced with Ken- 
tucky bluegrass, timothy and clovers. 

There is yet another side to the carbonate of lime mat- 
ter. Where it is abundant in soils grasses growing there 
are sweet and well-flavored, and animals relish them. 
Thus one may find parts of a pasture eaten down close 
and other parts neglected, the parts eaten close being 



EFFECT OF LIME ON GRASSES 267 

where there is most Hme in the surface soil. I have 
often observed on our own pastures that on certain hill- 
tops and slopes where erosion has put the limestone 
pebbles in the surface soil the horses gnaw the grass to 
the earth, while in other parts of the field with less lime 
in the surface soil the grass is left uneaten. 

Lime Sweetens Pastures. — Experiment has shown that 
animals so much prefer the grass that grows on limed 
soil (supposing it to have been lime-deficient) that 
there is nothing that pays better than to sweeten old pas- 
tures with lime before any other work of improvement 
is begun, though this and drainage go right together. 
One can not have sweet grass unless it is on land free 
from both soil acids and excess of moisture. If an old 
pasture is to be sweetened the lime may be applied as 
a top-dressing, in any form most convenient, either 
ground limestone, freshly-slaked quick lime applied in 
powder form, air-slaked lime, or carbonate of lime. 
Naturally the least harmful form is the raw ground lime- 
stone, and when this is available at a low price it should 
be chosen. The amounts that are advisable to use are, 
of fresh-burned and slaked lime, from 2 to 4 tons to 
the acre; air-slaked lime from 2 to 6 tons to the acre; 
carbonate of lime from 2 to 10 tons to the acre. 

r recall an amusing instance of the effect of raw pow- 
dered lime dust on pasture. A friend in the bluegrass 
land of Kentucky allowed a contractor to take from his 
field stone which was crushed and carried to the high- 
way. The crusher made a good deal of dust which the 
wind carried to the leeward until several acres were more 
or less powdered with the white dust. My friend was 



268 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

much disturbed to see this dust and to observe that the 
cattle refused to eat the grass where it lay, and sug- 
gested to the contractor that he owed damages for this 
nuisance and to this the contractor agreed. Then a rain 
came and washed off the grass and put some of the dust 
into the soil. Afterward there was very marked dif- 
ference in the aspect of the grass, the dusted grass being 
markedly superior and much more greedily eaten by 
the cattle, so that my friend laughingly recalled his com- 
plaint. It seems fairly effective simply to dust lime over 
the sod on old pastures, though doubtless much of it is 
slow to be worked down to where it is effective and 
sometimes it would be advisable to disk or harrow it into 
the soil. If there is a good sod, however, the earth 
worms will be abundant there and their casts will be 
laid above the lime particles so that finally they will be 
w^orked down to moist earth. 

Eifect of Lime on Pastured Animals. — In some re- 
gions it is common to find animals licking the lime wash 
from fences and buildings, gnawing bones, and in other 
ways displaying their lime-hunger. No good animals 
can ever be produced on such soils — at least not until 
they are corrected. Lime-hunger in a soil means lime- 
hunger in plants and lime deficiency there, and that, in 
turn, means animals eating the herbage will be deficient 
in bone, in stamina and substance. Furthermore, ani- 
mals in heavy milk can not possibly maintain their nat- 
ural body lime content, as has been shown by experi- 
ments at the Wisconsin station, and this lime exhaustion 
in the milk-giving animal is doubtless responsible for 
much of the breakdown among heavy milkers. 



HORSES ON LIMESTONE PASTURES 



26!) 




270 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

Animals and Pastures Rich in Lime. — There are pas- 
tures noted the world over for their splendid animals. 
At Nogent-le-Rotrou in France I was shown pastures on 
which could be produced the most splendid types of 
Percheron colts. These pastures were where they had 
the river wash from the Huisne, a stream that breaks 
through hills of soft limestone. These bottoms are doubt- 
less very rich in lime and in phosphates too; they bear 
splendid thick grass, and colts grazing on them will 
make marvelous development, while if they were pas- 
tured on the sandstone soils a mile away they would 
make only common work horses with no hope of coming 
to America as founders of a new race. In England it 
has long been recognized that pastures rich in lime and 
phosphorus made the best race horses and the best bone 
in drafters. So much is this believed that breeders there 
do not hesitate to go to great lengths artificially to lime 
pastures devoted to mares and colts of royal blood. There 
carbonate of lime in the shape of chalk is commonly 
used, though more or less burned lime is also applied and 
very much lime in combination with phosphorus in the 
form of basic slag. In our own land we have the ex- 
ample of Kentucky sending out a steady stream of splen- 
did colts, bulls, sheep and men from that central region 
where the rich limestone lay near the surface, and where 
their decay has left the land rich in both limestone and 
phosphorus. There are other regions nearly as notable, 
and many a failure has been recorded where men have 
taken good animals to soils deficient in lime and sought 
to breed young things as good as their sires and dams. 
Without exception, if they depended on the herbage of 



EFFECT OF LIME ON STOCK 271 

the natural pasture, the attempt has resulted in failure. 
One of the regions where the effect of lime in the soil 
is most markedly shown is in our own arid West. In that 
region there is commonly about 2 to 4 per cent of car- 
bonate of lime present in the surface soil, and grasses 
growing out of that land are very sweet and nutritious. 
Furthermore, the water of spring and stream is invari- 
ably impregnated with lime salts. Horses grown on the 
grass of that land have astonishing bone, hard, dense 
and nearly four times as strong and tough as the bone 
of horses grown on grasses in lime-deficient soils of the 
East. In France the Government once made examina- 
tion of soldiers, grouping them according to their birth- 
place, and found that those from regions where lime- 
stone abounded were nearly il/o" taller and correspond- 
ingly stronger and healthier than those from the lime- 
deficient lands. 

Feeding Lime and Bone to Animals. — While there is 
lack of accurate data as to the effect of feeding mineral 
substances directly to animals where the herbage is sup- 
posedly lime-deficient, yet we have proof that there is 
considerable gain in the practice. If one has not yet suf- 
ficiently limed one's soil so that the forage has in it nor- 
mal or above normal lime supply, one can lime the food 
or water that the animals drink. There are several ways 
that this has been done. L. Ogilvy of Colorado has 
placed lump lime in the drinking troughs with good 
results, and says it is a practice among some successful 
horse breeders in England. The amount of lime should 
be small ; a piece of fresh-burned lime as large as an egg 
dropped into a troughful of water say once or twice 



272 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

a week would seem to afford lime enough. Air-slaked 
lime may also be mixed with the salt at the rate of about 
equal parts, and the mixture kept always before animals, 
so that they will not become hungry enough for salt to 
eat too much at one time. Bonemeal is prepared espe- 
cially for stock-feeding and may be fed in any amount; 
what is not digested and retained will feed the pasture. 

Example of What Lime-Deficiency Will Do. — I know 
land that appears at first glance a paradise for animals 
and men. It lies at an altitude of between 3,000 and 
4,500 feet in the southern mountains. It has rich, black 
soil filled with humus and a thousand springs of spark- 
ling soft water. The grasses and clovers grow fairly 
well, though the shyness about either to remain in the 
land is indicative of lime-hunger. The water is like dis- 
tilled water. The cattle of that land are very small, 
with especially small bone. The men are short, slender 
and not strong. A friend cleared up a large sheep farm 
there and put on it Southdown and Shropshire sheep of 
fine breeding. He gave them intelligent care, yet stead- 
ily the flock deteriorated, the size ran down, the bone 
diminished, health and vigor were hard to maintain, and 
at last the down sheep were replaced by Merinos which 
throve far better for the very evident reason that Merino 
lambs are far slower in maturing than the downs and 
thus had time gradually to accumulate what lime they 
needed for bone-building and body use. While these 
pastures were too inaccessible to have lime hauled onto 
them, I think the flock could have been maintained by 
the simple expedient of feeding bonemeal and putting 
lime into the drinking water and the salt. 



BONEMEAL AND BASIC SLAG 273 

Bonemeal and Basic Slag. — As sources of lime and 
phosphorus, bonemeal and basic slag must be considered. 
Bonemeal is rich in phosphorus, has some nitrogen and 
considerable lime in the form of phosphate of lime. 
There is hardly any fertilizer so good for stimulating 
grasses and clovers as bonemeal. Its one drawback is 
the price, but this is commonly paid back and often sev- 
eral times over. There is no fear of bonemeal leaching 
from the land ; it is a permanency once applied. I have 
seen marvelous results from its use in the South where 
it is in common use for lawn-making on very infertile 
soils. The fact that bonemeal supplies some nitrogen 
as well as phosphorus is all in its favor in establishing 
and feeding grasses and clovers. 

Basic slag is a by-product of the steel-making plants. 
Foreign ores have a surplus of phosphorus, which is re- 
moved by smelting them with limestone, the lime united 
with the phosphorus making phosphate of lime. The 
slag is ground finely, and the finer it is ground the more 
valuable it is, since it is more available. It may contain 
15 to 20 per cent of phosphoric acid and 50 per cent more 
or less of carbonate of lime. Basic slag is the founda- 
tion of pasture improvement in the Old World. Its use 
brings in better grass and many clovers. It seems lit- 
tle less than miraculous to see how the sods become cov- 
ered over with young clovers where basic slag is used on 
pastures in England. Unfortunately, our own steel mills 
do not make basic slag and the freights from the Atlantic 
to the Middle West are almost prohibitive of its use. 

Lime, Drainage, Phosphorus, then What? — After all, 
one can not make a short cut by chemical means to na- 



274 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

ture's results in fertility-building. Nature builds soils by 
long accretions of fertility and by slowly accumulating 
organic matter, humus. We can not put mere chemicals 
into a poor soil and get the same results that nature gives 
in her slower way. Vegetable matter is needed. The 
slow decay of organic matter in the soil is needed to 
promote nature's wondrous soil cheniistry. The soil is 
a true laboratory. There are little bacteria living on 
decaying vegetable matter that do miracles there, gath- 
ering nitrogen of their own accord, and other bacteria 
in that very mysterious place, the soil, are at work too. 
Make the soil sweet, feed it phosphorus, and potassium 
if need be, but after all this is done add all the organic 
matter you can. Manure makes land rich now as it did 
in the days of our fathers. Chemicals help, are essential, 
indeed; but after them one must conserve organic mat- 
ter and increase it all one can. 

Two Lessons in Meadow-Brtildmg. — Some years ago 
we bought a very poor field and began work at reclaim- 
ing it. One corner was especially unfertile, a cold, wet 
clay. We drained this corner, then enriched it well, 
spreading over it a good deal of stable manure. The 
rest of the field was, some of it, very fertile land and had 
naturally less manure, though all the field had more or 
less manure and all alike was treated with phosphorus. 
The land was sown to alfalfa. At the outset the alfalfa 
' on this poor corner was lighter than elsewhere, but after 
two years the heaviest growth came from this part; the 
field was reversed and what was originally the poor cor- 
ner became the most productive. There would seem now 
no reason why this condition may not be maintained. 



EFFECT OF MANURE ON GRASSES 275 

The other lesson is of a field not manured but deeply 
plowed and cultivated 20 times, then fertilized with 
various artificial fertilizers, no manure given, and seeded 
to grass under the "Clark method." A good stand of 
grass was secured and the first year saw a heavy crop 
of hay. The following year, however, the yield was 
but ordinary and the third year saw the field in worse 
condition than those about it. The evident lesson is 
that the deep plowing, the frequent cultivation during 
warm weather preparatory to seeding the crop, used up 
a good deal of the humus needed to make the land have 
moisture-holding and bacteria-growing qualities, so that 
the last state of that land was worse than the first. It 
may be that had this field been top-dressed with manure 
after the first year it would have maintained itself, but 
it is clear that chemicals alone on soils deficient in humus 
will not make permanently for large yields of grains or 
clovers. 

Manure in Soils like Yeast in Bread. — Manure, 
vegetable matter decaying in the soil, acts much as does 
yeast in the moist dough ; it starts ferments, bacterial 
processes, some of them understood, some of them not. 
For example, we once bought a poor field and at once 
re-sold half of it to a neighbor. Our half we treated 
with acid phosphate, tankage, good plowing and a very 
slight sprinkling of manure. The land was then sown 
to clover with oats or barlev. Our neio-hbor imitated u? 
exactly except that, having no manure, he omitted it. 
We secured a good stand and a fine heavy growth of 
clover. Our neighbor secured a fair stand and a light 
growth. The amount of manure applied was insignifi- 



276 



MEADOWS AND PASTURES 



cant, so far as the actual fertility contained in it, but it 
was pregnant with results when it came to act. 

Cowpeas and Bluegrass. — In Virginia the best farmers 
desiring to sow worn limestone clays to bluegrass com- 
monly put the land first in cowpeas, which are turned 
under with all their growth. Afterward bluegrass takes 
w^ell and the effect of the peas is seen for some time; 
whereas it might be nearly impossible to establish the 




Bluegrass (40 lbs. green) from a square rod of Unmanured Land — Equal to 6,400 

lbs. green per. acre. 

bluegrass. The conclusion is irresistible : manure, veg- 
etable matter decaying in the soil, is the mother of grass 
and clover. 

Moisture the Limiting Factor in Grass Production. — 
What limits the production of meadow or pasture is the 
moisture supply. In not one year in a century is it ample 
at all seasons. Plants drink their food, and can make no 
growth in dry soil. It is best, therefore, to devote the 
better more moisture-holding soils to grasses, and put 



HUMUS NEEDED IN SOILS 



27: 



the drouthy soils to cultivated crops. Moisture is con- 
served by deep plowing and cultivation of the soil. Deep 
plowing on certain types of soil will help the grass, but 
cultivation after once meadow or pasture is laid down 
must cease. Alfalfa meadows are sometimes tilled after 
being cut, but no other meadow plant seems adapted to 
this culture, and it is hardly proved that it is profitable 
so to treat alfalfa. It is notable that soils well filled with 




Bluegrass (125 lbs. green) from a sqviare rod of Manured Land — Equal to 20,000 

lbs. green per acre. 

humus hold more moisture than those without vegetable 
matter, as the latter dry out like brick and are not well 
adapted to the growth of shallow-rooted grasses. If one 
wishes to grow grasses on these hard soils one should 
strive to get into them as much manure or vegetable mat- 
ter of any kind as can be secured, and afterward try 
so to manage that the grass will in a manner mulch 
itself by leaving enough of it to shade the land. There 
is great virtue in shading land, thus preventing injury 



278 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

• 

from sun-burning. Some careful pastoralists manage 
their pastures so that the sun never reaches the earth 
because the grass is never eaten down bare. Animals 
are kept off in spring till the grass has a good start, and 
afterward the amount of stock turned to pasture is so 
proportioned that the grass is always a little ahead of 
the beasts grazing it. 

Making Water Meadows. — In England and the con- 
tinent of Europe the effect of irrigation of meadow- 
land is well understood, and there when it is possible 
grasslands are arranged to be irrigated. I have seen in 
England water meadows so old that each little ditch 
bringing irrigation water was situated on the summit 
of a little ridge, whence the water flowed gently in every 
direction. The ridge effect was the result of countless 
grains of sand and silt, brought by water through the 
long years that it has run in these meadows, deposit- 
ing in the entangling grass blades and among the roots, 
thus steadily building the soil each year a little higher. 
It seems the practice in these meadows to allow the water 
to flow in almost continuous stream, though it is so 
distributed that only a trickle goes out at each point 
where it is diverted. The yield of grass obtained from 
these meadows is large, so that they commonly bring 
rentals of £3 and more per acre, whereas, common 
meadow land may bring no more than £1. I have seen 
no water meadows in America comparable to these of 
Europe since here irrigation is almost altogether confined 
to the arid West, and is given chiefly to alfalfa, though 
along the eastern slopes of the Sierras in California and 
Nevada I have seen irrigated pastures of bluegrass and 



WHERE GRASS PAYS 279 

white clover that yielded marvelous burdens of forage. 
Furthermore, cattle on those irrigated pastures become 
as fat as w^e can make them in Ohio with grass and corn. 
I think one of the first works that should be undertaken 
to increase the production of grass, beef, mutton and 
colts on eastern fields should be to begin to utilize our 
streams, now all running to waste, in irrigating grass 
fields. It is not, of course, possible except in exceptional 
locations, and the first installation costs labor and money, 
but after once it is installed the maintenance is very 
cheap and the production of the land should be nearly 
trebled. Water meadows, however, commonly need no 
other fertilization than that brought by the water, and 
build themselves steadily in fertility from year to year. 
Where Grass is Most Profitable. — The fact that the 
moisture supply is the limiting factor in the production 
of meadows and pastures determines to a considerable 
degree their profitable placing. Where there is abundant 
summer rainfall there grow the rankest grasses ; where 
heats and drouth prevail there one must plow and till 
in order to reap. Thus New England, New York and 
the moist mountain valleys of Virginia seem the most 
natural grass regions of the United States, though good 
production is seen as far west as the Mississippi River, 
and south to the line of Tennessee. Iowa, Missouri, 
Kansas and Nebraska have decreasing rainfall and hot 
summers; here evidently, deep-rooted crops such as 
alfalfa, or tilled crops such as corn or sorghum, are 
most profitable. Thus in Oklahoma and the Panhandle 
of Texas it once required 20 acres to keep a steer a year 
on the short but thick and nutritious grass that was 



280 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

native to the region. No growth could take place during 
most of the summer months, and only during periods of 
rainfall could grasses advance. In those regions the 
advent of the plow w^as truly in accordance with sound 
practice, for by deep plowing and good tillage much 
moisture that falls in winter is conserved and the deep 
rooting corn, sorghum and Kaffir-corn make good 
growth. I have seen sorghum stalks 12' high alongside 
the native buffalo or grama grass 4" high. The lesson 
is clear : In hot countries there is always lack of moisture 
near the surface and there one should plant things that 
root deep or plant annuals that permit good soil culture 
in preparation of their establishment. 

Seeding the Nezv Grassland. — We have now taken a 
general survey of the situation. Let us get out and sow 
down a bit of pasture or meadow land. First, scan the 
land itself. Let us walk over it. Is it well-drained? 
If not, choose where tiles or open ditches will best draw 
away the water that, stagnant in the land, brings in 
rank stuffs that we do not want and discourage the good 
things. Is it sour ? We can after a little experience and 
observation judge of that, and if we are in doubt we can 
test the soil with a few drops of hydrochloric acid and 
see if we get effervescence, or we can adapt our grasses 
to a sour soil if we do not care to sweeten it with lime. 
Then we study its fitness in the matter of accumulation 
of vegetable matter, humus. If it is very sandy, grav- 
elly or clayey, and has in it little organic matter, we 
must do something for that sooner or later. Perhaps 
v/e will wish to plow first, then run the manure spreader 
over the field and disk in the manure left there.. And 



AID FROM DEEP PLOWING 281 

finally to the questions of how to plow, when to plow, 
when to sow, and what to sow. 

Plowing. — There assuredly are soils that are helped 
enormously by deep plowing. There are other soils 
that need to be kept religiously "right side up." There 
are thin soils with an inch or two of top stuff brown with 
slowly accumulated humus and beneath very dense, cold, 
poor clay. Suddenly to turn such land over to a depth 
of 12" or more would be to court defeat unless one had 
a considerable quantity of manure that one could apply. 
In event one has the manure and will mix it in well, 
probably the deep plowing of this hard poor clay would 
be useful, and might result in much better grass than 
would come wnth shallow plowing or mere disking; but 
to turn suddenly that dense subsoil to the surface and 
attempt to make in it a seedbed for a tiny grass plant, 
would be to court disaster. There are soils, however, 
so deep, with subsoil immediately under them well filled 
with carbonate of lime, that the deeper they are plowed 
within reason the better the results will be. On such 
soils we are plowing 14" deep, and more when laying 
down to alfalfa, and we would not hesitate to do the 
same in laying the land down to grasses. As a. rule, 
however, with many exceptions, when making a seedbed 
for grasses, keep the soil as near right side up as you can 
and try to have in the upper surface as much decaying 
vegetable matter as you can get. Imitate the natural 
sod which is a mass of decaying stems, leaves and roots. 
However deep the land may be plowed, here is a rule 
that should be inviolable : plow early. If the seeding is 
to be done in the fall, plow If possible in midsummer. 



282 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

The land must settle together again, so that the capillaries 
will be established and moisture can come up from be- 
neath. The land must not only be plowed early, but it 
must be frequently harrowed afterward, and the first 
harrowing should be within three hours of the plowing. 
To accomplish this one may plow till lo o'clock in the 
forenoon, harrow the fresh-plowed land till noon and 
repeat the operation at 4 o'clock on what is plowed after 
dinner. By this means good pulverization is secured and 
moisture conserved. To further moisture conservation 
one should harrow with a steel drag harrow (or any 
other sort may serve) soon after each rainfall, as the 
land will work nicely without packing. The land should 
be carefully dragged till it is level and smooth. 

Top-dress With Manure Before Seeding. — If the field 
can have a top-dressing of fine manure, harrowed in and 
mixed all through the surface soil, it will assure a fine 
catch and rapid growth. Manure turned under will not 
soon benefit the young plants. 

Application of Lime. — When liming is needed the 
work may be done either before or after plowing. Car- 
bonate of lime may be stirred into the soil with the har- 
row and if it comes in contact with the manure no espe- 
cial loss will occur. Caustic lime should not touch ma- 
nure, and it should be well mixed through the soil before 
the manure is applied. 

Time to Seed Grasses. — Nature ripens grass seeds in 
the summer; they fall to earth and lie dormant till rains 
of fall cause them to spring into growth. Commonly 
the fall IS the best timiC to sow grass seeds. If one be- 
gins one's work of preparing a seed bed in late summer, 



SELECTING SEED MIXTURES 283 

one can make a seed bed fine and fit by September. One 
should not sow the seed until the ground is sufficiently 
full of moisture so that if the seeds germinate they will 
not perish for lack of support. Time of seeding varies 
with location and with season. In the fall one can sow 
grass seeds from August till November, with the best 
chances of success probably about the middle of Sep- 
tember. In the spring one can hardly sow the seed too 
early; certainly as soon as one can get a seed bed one 
must put in the seed, and in spring seeding one can not 
and need not delay so long to perfect a seed bed as in 
the fall. 

The Mixture to Select. — Alany grass mixtures com- 
pounded by seedsmen are silly agglomerations, with the 
bulk made up of good varieties and many poorer ones 
added literally to throw chaff into the eye of the cus- 
tomer. There is not a long list of good grasses adapted 
to any soil. For example, if one has a soil adapted to 
Kentucky bluegrass, and wishes to grow that grass, one 
has no use for Canada bluegrass, redtop or a lot of 
other grasses listed in seedsmen's catalogues. Mix with 
bluegrass meadow fescue, brome grass and timothy, the 
latter to come on soon and afford temporary pasture, and 
the others because all three are good grasses liked by ani- 
mals. One is unwise to sow orchard grass where one 
desires bluegrass, because it is stronger and coarser, and 
is not eaten by animals that can get bluegrass. For a 
poor soil deficient in lime, use redtop, Canada bluegrass 
and orchard grass. For mowing, in soil deficient in lime 
and fertility, sow orchard grass, tall oatgrass and redtop. 
For good soil with sufficient moisture, sow a mowing 



284 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

grass, as timothy. A second choice for good soil and 
plenty of moisture is timothy. For wet soil and lime- 
deficient but yet fairly good, sow timothy and redtop. 
For pasture or meadow in the Northwest, sow brome 
grass and meadow fescue. For pasture and meadow in 
Kansas and Nebraska, sow timothy, brome grass and 
meadow fescue. For winter pasture or temporary lawn 
in the South, sow Italian rye grass, and so on through 
the list. The reader, after studying the chapters de- 
scribing the various grasses, will have little difficulty in 
making out his own mixture or choosing a single grass 
to sow alone. 

Mixtures vs. One Grass. — Hunt says that no mixture 
'will afford more forage than will a single grass sown 
alone, if it is adapted to the soil and climate. While 
there is doubtless exaggerated expectation of the effi- 
ciency of mixtures, I must say I have seen evidence that 
mixtures for -pastures are good in their way. The evil 
of a mixture is that sometime there is in it a grass of 
inferior quality ; that one will be neglected and the others 
grazed, so that after a time the inferior grass is left 
in the ascendency. Thus it is folly to mix brome grass 
with orchard grass or bluegrass with orchard grass, since 
animals commonly leave orchard grass untouched when 
they can gnaw the more delicate grasses, and yet orchard 
grass is nutritious and palatable and eaten well when 
growing alone. When one is not sure of one's soil one 
may find that in the "shotgun mixtures" of many seeds 
one will find some that will be especially well adapted, 
and thus achieve better results than if one seeded at a 
venture one grass alone. For hay one must bear in mind 



QUANTITY OF SEED PER ACRE 285 

that nothing" sells so well as timothy and any admixture 
decreases the price obtainable. 

Amount of Seed to the Acre. — Grass seeds are com- 
monly very minute. Thus of bluegrass there are 2,400,- 
000 seeds to the pound, of redtop 6,000,000 and of tim- 
othy 1,700,000. If, then, one pound of bluegrass seed 
could be evenly distributed over an acre, it would place 
about 55 seeds to the square foot, a number ample to 
give a good stand of grass. However, it is nearly im- 
possible to get a perfect distribution of seeds, and quite 
impossible to get them covered evenly, so that one can 
not count on more than a very small percentage of ger- 
mination. There is the further fact that when the little 
seedling grass plant comes to light it is very weak and 
small, and alone is pretty sure to perish. Literally, in 
union there is strength. I have sown grass seeds in the 
fall and later seen perfect stands where the seed was 
sown ''too thick," and very poor stands indeed where it 
was sown ''just right," as we had believed at seeding 
time, all the other care alike. With the smaller seeds 
then of the bluegrasses, redtop, and others of that nature, 
the thicker the seeding the better the hopes. I should 
not hesitate with these seeds to put on 20 to 30 pounds 
to the acre, no matter if it does seem too liberal a seed- 
ing. Of timothy, orchard grass, brome grass, and seeds 
of like size, one can sow much less seed and get good 
stands. I found by experiment that timothy sown very 
thick gave a very reduced yield, and Hunt found that 
because of timothy's strong stooling habit a single plant 
had given 125 pounds of well cured hay. Only 3,200 
plants such as that would be required on one acre to 



286 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

give a yield of 2 tons of hay, or one plant to about each 
14 square feet. When 9 pounds of timothy are sown 
on one acre over 200 seeds are left on each square foot. 
When sown alone 10 to 15 pounds to the acre are com- 
monly sown, and if clover is to be sown with it 8 to 10 
pounds, and in the spring" as much red clover or clover 
mixtures. Commonly it is wise to err on the side of 
too much seed, timothy on rich soil seeming the excep- 
tion that goes to prove the rule. 

Aiding Young Grass Seedlings. — Anything that will 
keep the earth moist and shaded while young grasses are 
getting started will be a real help. To distribute chaff 
or light manure over the field would aid. Chaff from 
the mangers or feeding floor will often result in a stand 
of grass, when sowing pure seed would fail simply be- 
cause the chaff would keep the earth from too rapid dry- 
ing out. Further, to make the surface quite firm and 
almost hard after the seed was sown would be a distinct 
gain since it would tend to hold the moisture near the 
surface. 

Solving the Seed. — In my father's time men sowed all 
seeds by hand, but that day is gone, and the men who 
could thus evenly distribute seed are dead. The best ve- 
hicles for sowing grass seeds are the fiddlebow seeder, 
the Cahoon seeder (these with winged discs that throw 
the seed far on either side, the man walking and turn- 
ing the machine by hand) and the wheelbarrow seeder. 
The latter tool is possibly the better, assuredly the most 
accurate, though one can with care give good distribution 
with either of the machines. There are drills made 
for drilling in clover and alfalfa seeds; these work well 



COVER GRASS SEEDS 287 

and save much seed, besides giving better stands than 
are commonly secured. These drills will also seed blue- 
grass and timothy quite well, though to do so the land 
should be very fine and smooth. An efficient leveler to 
precede a grass or clover seeding drill is made by taking 
two pieces of 2"x6" stuff 8' long, setting these on edge 
like the runners of a sled, spacing them to be parallel 
and G or 8' apart. Between these, connecting them at 
right angles, place 4 cross pieces of the same dimension 
stuff, each piece set on edge at the same level. This is 
drawn by a rather long hitch so that it drags earth with 
each of the 4 cross pieces (five may be provided) and 
each one deposits something in a low place and aids in 
scraping off the high places. A little weight may or 
may not be needed to make this leveler operate well, de- 
pending on the looseness of the soil. It pays well in 
sowing grass and clover seeds to have the land fine, firm 
and smooth. 

Covering the Seed. — The lightest covering must be 
given to very small seeds such as bluegrass ; other 
stronger seeds, such as timothy and brome grass, may 
be covered half an inch or more deep and yet find their 
way through. Ordinarily, if the seed is sown alone, a 
bush harrow may be used to good advantage, or a plank 
drag will rub the seed sufficiently into the earth. If 
the seed is sown with a nurse-crop it may be sown in 
front or behind the drill ; if in front, some of it will be 
lost but commonly enough will be covered to a proper 
depth to give a stand. 

Seeding zvifh a Nurse-Crop. — In sowing grass seed in 
the fall it is the almost universal custom to use a nurse- 



288 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

crop, commonly of wheat, winter barley or rye. The 
use of a nurse-crop is often an advantage, since it les- 
sens the danger of the little seedlings being lifted out 
by the frost or buried by repeated thawings and freez- 
ings. Timothy sown alone on a good seedbed, well en- 
riched, will come along better alone and make a fair 
crop of hay the next season. If sown with wheat it may 
be so far advanced as to struggle with the wheat for 
supremacy, so it is common in some sections to sow the 
timothy lo days after the wheat to hold it in check. It 
is always better for the grasses if the nurse-crop is 
mown off early for hay, as sometimes when it is per- 
mitted to ripen grain it has so shaded the land and 
drained it of its moisture that the little seedling grasses 
are lost. 

Seeding Clovers in the Spring. — Where grasses have 
been sown in the fall the clovers are commonly best 
added in the spring. Fall-sown clovers need early sow- 
ing in northern climes, though in the South they are best 
and may be sown as late as November in the Gulf States. 
Commonly in the regions where grass is grown clovers 
are added in spring. There are several methods of doing 
this. The easiest and perhaps most common is to sow on 
frozen ground at a time when the frost has honey- 
combed the land. This lets the seed sink down and 
become more or less covered. Others sow as early as 
February and trust to the freezing and thawing of win- 
ter to bury the seed. Yet others sow half their seed 
over the ground early and the remaining half after 
growth starts in the spring. It has been my experience 
that each way will succeed if the soil is right, though 



HARROWING BEFORE SEEDING 289 

there is always uncertainty more or less great in clover 
seeding on unprepared land. When one can do so with- 
out disturbing the grasses too much one should wait 
till the land is dry enough to work in April or late March, 
then harrow lightly and sow the clovers, perhaps harrow- 
ing again to cover the seed. With proper care this may 
be done with no resulting injury to the previous seeding, 
or so little injury that the good of having a sure stand 
of clovers much more than offsets it. One will need 
here to be in the field in person since one can not trust 
the harrowing of young grasses to ignorant and heedless 
laborers. It is common to use lo pounds of clover seed 
which may be of purely red clover, or a mixture of red 
and other clovers. Always where there is suspicion that 
alfalfa may succeed one should sow in the mixture 
enough alfalfa seed to give a thin scattering of plants 
over the field, in order to inoculate the field and to show 
the condition of the soil in respect to sweetness, drain- 
age and fertility, since there is no such soil barometer 
as the alfalfa plant. I have had fine success with a mix- 
ture of 6 pounds of red clover, 3 pounds of alsike and 
I pound of alfalfa, though this mixture may put too 
much alsike into the meadow, and the use of 2 pounds 
of the latter and 7 pounds of red clover, with i pound 
of alfalfa, may give a better result, this depending cer- 
tainly on the nature of the land. If one desires, one 
can sow more alfalfa, but the small amount indicated 
will be enough to give a scattering stand for purposes 
of observation and inoculation. Sweet clover may be 
introduced into the mixture if the field is to be mown; 
animals do not graze this clover well when they may 



290 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

get other grasses and clovers. If for pasture always add 
2 to 4 pounds of white clover. 

Seeding Grasses in the Spring. — If all the seeds are 
to be sown in the spring one should have the land plowed 
early as possible so that it may be well settled together. 
Much grass seed is lost because of too loose a seedbed 
in spring. Give all the harrowing that you can and 
work the land down to a thorough seedbed, yet hasten 
the work so as to get the seeding done as early as there 
is growing weather. Along the 40th parallel I like to 
sow grass seeds the first week in April; during some 
years March will be a better time, and farther south 
the work may be best done still earlier. I do not think 
that in spring the chances are very good of getting a 
stand of grasses having small seeds, such as bluegrass, 
unless one seeds quite early and on a good, fine, firm 
seedbed. Here again it is true that the more seed used 
the better the chance of success, since by their very mul- 
tiplicity the seedlings protect one another. Here again 
comes in the helpful nurse-crop. 

Nurse-Crops in Spring. — I advise always the use of 
a nurse-crop; that is, if the farmer can use one with 
judgment and discretion; if he cares only for the nurse- 
crop he had better seed the grasses alone. If he will sow 
one bushel to the acre of spring barley, preferably a 
short-strawed, strong variety that will not lodge, or 3 
pecks o£ oats, if he will remorselessly cut the nurse-crop 
off for hay when in bloom, it will do good and no harm. 
If, on the other hand, he seeks to get a maximum crop 
of grain and a seeding of young grasses at the same 
spring sowing, he will very often get the grain and a 



A STAND OF GRASS 291 

very unsatisfactory and uneven stand of grass. The thin 
seeding of a nurse-crop is a distinct help if it is taken 
away before it has exhausted the soil of moisture; if 
it is allowed to stand till the grain is ripened many of 
the young grass plants will have died. 

A Sure Way to Get a Grass Stand. — In order to get 
a stand of these young grasses one must have the land 
firm, the shading weeds destroyed and the sun let in but 
not too strongly. The best success that I have ever had 
in seeding has been to sow early in spring with a nurse- 
crop of barley or oats, and as soon as the grasses and 
clovers and grain were well started turning in a flock of 
sheep and letting them graze it all down, but not close. 
As soon as it is well grazed down, which should be within 
a few days, the sheep are taken out and all allowed to 
start growth again. The sheep are turned in the sec- 
ond, and later the third, time, judgment being used to 
see that they do not gnaw the young clovers too. I have 
had no such stands in any other system of management 
as I have secured in this way. The little feet of the sheep 
seem to firm the land just right without overdoing it. 
The nibbling down of the oats or barley, the nipping off 
of the weeds, all seem to favor the young and spring- 
ing grasses and clovers. After the nurse-crop has been 
disposed of finally in this manner, the sheep should be 
taken out for some months to let the young seeding get 
a brave start. 

Use of a Roller. — The roller is an almost indispensable 
implement in getting a good stand of grass in the spring. 
The land must be made firm for little seedlings. Sev- 
eral types of rollers are in use. In general we may say 



292 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

that a roller may easily be too heavy, especially in a moist 
season; that if the earth is moist the roller should not be 
used until it has dried somewhat, so that no packmg or 
crusting will occur, and that it is often advantageous 
to roll the new seeding weeks or even months after sow- 
ing, should the land get dry and there be danger that 
the loose seedbed may dry out before the rootlets of 
the small grasses and clovers can reach permanent mois- 
ture below. I have often taken out a very heavy roller 
in midsummer and pressed down hard the young 
meadow, with excellent results. For such use a roller 
of concrete is very useful; it may be made to weigh a 
ton or more, and for use in dry weather the heavier it 
is, within reason, the better. The heavy roller is useful 
also as a pusher-in of small stones and sticks that might 
hurt the mower. One should own tw^o rollers ; one may 
be light for use in the spring and the other to use on 
old meadows or pastures much heavier. 

Corrugated Rollers. — Rollers are made with corru- 
gations having a rather sharp V-shaped edge. These 
are admirable for new seedings. The seeds pressed in 
by use of this roller are sure to be in part in moist, fit 
soil and the resultant stand is apt to be very good. This 
roller is not so well adapted to use on old-established 
meadows unless one is desirous of pushing in some fresh 
seed. 

After-Care of Young Grasses and Clovers. — And 
when one has a stand, Avhat ? Consider that the young 
things are infants, and be gentle. If the land must be 
grazed take out the animals in wet weather. It takes 
time to establish a tough sod that will bear up the ani- 



METHODS OF MANAGEMENT 293 

mals' feet. It is really better oftentimes to mow the 
new field for a year before animals are turned in. Weeds 
do great harm; mow them off or pull them. Watch to 
see that the clovers do not smother out the young 
grasses; cut them off before they can do this if danger 
there is. Commonly clovers do not smother, and alfalfa 
least of all, since it grows straight, and lodges less than 
red clover. Watch to see where feeding is needed and 
make mental note of these places, so that the manure 
spreader may go over them in the winter, lightly dis- 
tributing stable manure, or if the grasses need immedi- 
ate strengthening one may give them a dressing of lOO 
pounds of nitrate of soda and about 300 pounds of acid 
phosphate per acre, distributing these on the surface 
where rains Avill soon make their presence felt. Weeds, 
nurse-crop, a too loose seedbed, and starvation — these 
are the dangers to new seedings. 

CARE AND MANAGEMENT OF MEADOWS 
AND PASTURES. 

Some grasses seem benefited by hard grazing and much 
tramping. Bluegrass is one of these ; if the land is loose 
the grass does not thrive as it will if it is packed by the 
feet of stock. There are other grasses that are much 
hurt by being tread upon; among these is timothy. Yet 
while bluegrass is the better for being tramped and 
grazed rather hard, it is wise management that takes off 
animals in wet weather of early spring, when the ani- 
mals' feet poach hard the land and tramp it into cud. 
Such tramping is injurious. 



294 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

Feeding on Pastures. — The thing most helpful to a 
pasture is to feed animals on it some rich feed, as cot- 
tonseed-meal, alfalfa hay, or, in fact, any ration that 
makes the animals thrive, though feeds rich in nitrogen 
add most to the value of the grass. English farmers 
know this well and buy our linseed meal or cake, and 
cottonseed cake as well, which they feed to bullocks and 
sheep on grass. They feed, also, our corn, but say that 
they do not. see so much benefit to the land where corn 
has been fed as where cake has been fed, and this is but 
natural, since the cake is rich in nitrogen (derived from 
the protein of these feeds), while corn is rather deficient 
in protein. Assuredly feeding on pasture is the best 
method of making it good, and commonly profit is de- 
rived from the feeding operations as well. There is need 
of care that the feed troughs do not always remain in 
one spot and that the animals do not destroy the grasses 
by tramping it into mud during the wet time of the year. 
It is all too common in America to place feed troughs in 
the pasture or feedlots and leave them in one spot for 
years. Thus there is wasted, and much more than 
wasted, a great deal of manure, the net result of which 
for years will be the rank-growing jimpson weed and 
dog fennel. Feed troughs and racks should always be 
on runners so that horses can quickly move them from 
one spot to another and thus have the manure well dis- 
tributed over the pasture. The yield of grass may in 
this manner be very much more than doubled, and it is 
doubtful whether there is any better way of recovering 
the fertility deposited by the cattle than by a wise man- 
agement of pasture grasses to take it up. 



A WAY TO FEED PASTURES 



295 




296 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

Effect of Manure on Permanent Pasture. — I have 
found nowhere any greater profit from the use of com- 
mon farm manures than on old pastures, principally blue- 
grass. Commonly men do not have any means of know- 
ing just what good they get from manure on pasture. In 
our lawn, which is newly taken in from an old bluegrass 
pasture, I applied in the winter of 1908 manure to one 
square rod of grass, giving it only a fairly liberal dress- 
ing, maybe at the rate of 10 tons to the acre. In 1909 I 
harvested the square rod with the scythe, and it yielded 
more than 125 pounds; in truth, the actual weight was 
155 pounds, but as it was weighed a little damp I called 
it 125 — much too little I feel; while the unmanured rod 
right alongside made a yield of 55 pounds, which I 
guessed at 40 pounds, allowing for the moisture of dew. 
These weights were at the rate of 31-5 tons and 10 tons 
to the acre. Thus the manure had made an increase per 
acre of 6 4-5 tons or about a ton of forage for a ton of 
manure. This was cut in May, so that there was nearly 
as much more growth during the summer and fall, which 
illustrates just how profitable bluegrass pasture may be. 
Ten tons of silage corn is considered a fair yield of for-, 
age. Is not 10 tons of green grass eaten off by good ani- 
mals fully as likely to give profit ? Consider, too, that to 
grow the acre of silage corn w^ill.cost at least $5 and to 
grow the acre of bluegrass mixed with white clover has 
cost only the manuring, which would be even more neces- 
sary in the case of the corn than in the case of grass. 
While the unmanured bluegrass, producing about 3 tons 
of green forage to the acre, might show a small profit, 
yet the point is to know how yields may be increased. 



PHOSPHORUS FOR PASTURES 297 

Mineral Manures on Pastures. — Lime is the bedrock of 
good grass pasture. After lime, comes the need of phos- 
phorus and potassium. Most soils in the United States 
have in them now a good supply of potassium. The ex- 
ceptional soils are those derived from peat and sandy 
lands. Peaty soils may be so deficient in potassium, 
though not all of them are, that the grasses growing on 
them will have little value. Sandy soils are more often 
in need of potassium, but on such soils pastures are, as 
yet, rarely established. Phosphorus is the substance 
more commonly needed in soils; in fact, there are few 
soils in the world that are as rich in this element as would 
be best for plants. The one region that I call to mind 
now that is not benefited by use of more phosphorus 
than is native to the soil is the bluegrass region of Ken- 
tucky. There are parts of this region that show about 
5 per cent of phosphoric acid in its subsoil, and many 
small nodules of phosphatic rock are scattered through 
the earth within easy reach of plant roots. I have tested 
several forms of phosphorus on permanent pasture in 
Ohio, but unfortunately have no figures showing re- 
sults. Apparently the best results were secured by a 
very liberal use of floats or finely-ground phosphatic 
rock distributed right over the thick sod of an old pas- 
ture. Of this substance nearly a ton to the acre was 
used (it costs about $8 per ton in large lots) and it is 
plain to see that the result has been a doubling of the 
grass and a great increase in the number of clovers in 
it, beside a distinct difference in color of the herbage. 
I applied also a sprinkling of stable manure, which com- 
plicates the situation, but I have no doubt that I will 



298 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

recover much more than the cost of this phosphorus 
and that it will continue to return good results for many 
years. There is no fear of the phosphorus or floats being 
washed out of the soil ; it becomes slowly available when 
in combination with decaying vegetable matter or in 
acid soil and is steadily buried in the land as earth- 
worms bring up their casts and rains wash the floats 
down. 

Bonemeal will do w^onders to grass, as I have often 
seen, commonly where applied to lawns, but I regret 
that I have no figures of American practice showing the 
cost and results. Nor, though we have used it, have I 
any accurate data as to the result of acid phosphate on 
pasture land. I have, how^ever, found it to increase the 
yield of alfalfa applied on meadows that were failing. 
There are now experiments being conducted in Missouri, 
Ohio, Virginia, and I hope other states, to determine the 
best use and profit resulting from the use of many sub- 
stances on grass land, though as yet but meager results 
have become available. 

Animals Graze Manured. Grass Better. — "I do not ob- 
ject," remarked Josh Billings, ''that folks know so much, 
but I do object that they know so many things that are 
not so." It is indeed annoying to learn how many of 
the common opinions held by mankind are erroneous, even 
when they are on such easily observable phenomena as 
pertain to farms. Nearly all farmers believe that manure 
put on pasture makes the grass coarse, rank and dis- 
tasteful to animals. The reverse is true; manure on pas- 
ture makes the grass more appetizing and nutritious. 
This is true as to sheep and cows, and to an extent as to 



EXCESS OF MANURE ON GRASS 299 

horses. I have daily opportunity to witness how eagerly 
the cows and sheep nibble certain strips in a pasture 
nearby, where manure is thinly spread each year and 
where the grass grows thick and green. There are ex- 
ceptions to this truth, however, and things w^ell worth 
bearing in mind. 

Excessive Horse Manure on Pastures. — It seems 
proved that it is dangerous to put large amounts of city 
manure on horse pastures, for though it may make a 
great growth of grass the grass seems sometimes to 
cause disease among the horses grazing it. In Virginia 
where men have bought farms and turned them into 
grazing land they have sometimes sought a quick short 
cut to good grass by the use of large amounts of manure 
shipped from cities. This manure would be nearly all 
made by horses. While the result in growth was very 
satisfactory, yet there developed quite frequently the 
disease called ''pighead." Henry Fairfax, a very care- 
ful observer, related these facts to me, and further stated 
that he had cured a number of cases by simply taking 
them away from the excessively rich manured pastures 
and putting them on his own grass where little or no 
manure had ever been applied. I have observed that 
horses very unw^illingly graze over or near their own 
droppings, nature seeming by instinct to direct them 
where it is safe and healthful to graze and away from 
the unsafe. Sheep and cattle graze readily on the spots 
neglected by horses. 

Mixed Stocking of Pastures. — For many reasons it is 
wise to graze pastures either with a mixed company of 
cattle, horses and sheep, or else to alternate them, using' 



300 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

say the sheep first, following with cattle and later by 
horses, though the order of rotation is not so very essen- 
tial. The first animals turned to the grass will take the 
cream from it. If the three classes of animals graze 
together there will be few^ weeds left uneaten and the 
grass will be cut down pretty evenly all over. 

Do not put Sheep Manure on Sheep Pastures. — While 
all animals harbor parasites, sheep are more in danger 
from these scourges than other animals. There are 
various parasites that may develop in the grass, chief 
among them being the stomach w^orm, though tapeworms 
and the worm causing nodular disease cause much trouble 
and loss. These parasites all come from germs that pass 
out in the excrements and develop in the young spring- 
ing grass. It is clear that grave danger to the flock 
lurks in any land manured with sheep manure and carry- 
ing grass. There is of course no danger that sheep 
parasites would attack horses, and small danger that 
they would attack cattle, though the stomach worm seems 
to find a host in calves at times and to cause considerable 
trouble. It is safe to put sheep manure w^here it will be 
plowed under for crops. There is no danger of infection 
from hay or other forage mowed from manured fields. 

Foreign Experience in Feeding Pastures. — In the Old 
World men have long practiced the art of feeding and 
maintaining pasture lands. I was much interested to see 
that they not only fed their pastures, but they fed espe- 
cially certain parts of them. For example, Ernest Per- 
riot at Nogent-le-Rotrou in France showed me pastures 
that were never fertilized, being subject to overflow of 
the river Huisne, and other pastures that were fed in 



ENGLISH WAY TO FEED GRASSES 301 

V 

parts and in other parts left unfed. There much reH- 
ance was placed on basic slag, which seemed to make ^he 
grass sweeter and more filled with clovers. James Peter 
in Gloucestershire, England, showed me pastures parts 
of which he fed and other parts that needed no feed- 
ing. His practice is to use i,ooo pounds of bonemeal 
once in 7 years, and annually a few hundred pounds of 
basic slag. He also feeds corn and cake to good cattle 
on grass, and the results are extraordinary, the thickness 
and richness of the grass being almost past belief. In 
England it is a common sight in spring to see manure 
distributors going over the fields putting on basic slag, 
mixed sometimes with a small am.ount of nitrate of soda. 
It is thought, however, that the slag should for best 
results be applied in the fall. In Scotland I observed 
the use of fertilizers on pasture, and the intelligent sys- 
tem of study by which the land was divided into a series 
of small pastures, each one given a different fertilization, 
and each lot stocked with sheep, careful account of which 
w^as kept so that one could know just which combina- 
tion of fertilizers paid best. This work is new to us in 
America, but it seems assured .that we shall soon come 
to it with the plowing up of pasture land in the West, 
and the consequent decrease in cattle stocks just at a time 
when meats are higher than ever before within our 
knowledge. 

Fertilization mi Art of Diversity. — It is no simple 
problem to take a given bit of land and ascertain just 
what sort of fertilization will best suit it. The problem 
will require a separate w^orking out for each class of 
soils. Roughly, we may thus divide our soils and their 



302 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

requirements: First the clays, deficient in limestone. 
These soils need carbonate of lime, and are benefited by 
phosphorus and manures. They rarely call for potas- 
sium. Second, clays having enough carbonate of lime 
already in their composition. These are our natural 
grasslands and are easiest made to grow good grasses. 
They respond to applications of phosphorus and sprink- 
lings of .manures. In our hot climate and under our 
burning suns we use up humus faster than they do in 
England, and so any sort of vegetable matter laid over 
the land is of great use, even to feed cornstalks and let 
them lie to decay will help grass on these heavy clays. 
On these limestone clays phosphorus and nitrogen are 
the deficient elements, but if the phosphorus is supplied 
commonly clovers will come in, or may be invited in, 
and will supply the nitrogen. Here one could use basic 
slag if one were near enough to the seashore to get it 
at a reasonable cost, since even on these soils there is 
seldom quite enough of carbonate of lime in the top- 
soil. Next may be placed sandy soils. These are helped 
by the use of carbonate of lime, phosphorus, potassium 
and the seeding in of clovers. Lastly come peaty lands, 
of which we have less than are found in the Old World ; 
these are vastly helped by the use of potassium and phos- 
phorus, but they do not usually need applications of nitro- 
gen, as this element can be obtained by growing legumes. 
Thus it will be seen that each man will have to feel 
his way in this work, testing one substance and another, 
feeling pretty sure, however, that phosphorus will al- 
ways help, that the land that is not benefited by the 
use of stable manure is a curiosity in America; that 



FERTILIZERS FOR TIMOTHY 303 

drainage is always a good thing, and that carbonate of 
lime sweetens grass and makes clovers thrive. 

Fertilization of Timothy and the Crop Follozving.^ 
Bulletin 273 of Cornell University Experiment Station, 
Ithaca, N. Y., is full of significant facts relating to the 
efifect of fertilizers of various sorts and of farm manures 
on timothy and on the corn crop following. Briefly, 
the fertilizers applied were nearly all profitable in in- 
creasing the timothy crop alone, and the corn following 
showed marked results. B}^ far the larger residual re- 
sults were secured from the use of barnyard manure, 
10 tons to the acre producing an increase of 110.3 per 
cent and 20 tons producing 11 5.1 per cent increase. The 
summary follows : 

"This bulletin shows that both manure and artificial fertilizers 
have a marked residual effect. On plats 711-732, the average yields 
of the plats receiving fertilizers above the check plats show a gain 
of 35.8 per cent for forage, 25.15 per cent for stover, and 66.65 per 
cent for ear corn. In all cases the increase in ear corn was greater 
than that in forage or stover. When a single fertilizer was used, 
potassium increased the ear corn more than nitrogen or phosphorus. 
When two were used in combination, potassium and phosphorus 
gave the greatest increase in forage and stover, potassium and nitro- 
gen in ear corn. The maximum increase in forage, ear corn and 
stover was obtained when all three fertilizers were added. (The 
previous j^ear the same combination gave the highest yield of tim- 
othy.) The residual effect of barnyard manure was greater than 
that of any combination of artificial fertilizers. Ten tons per acre 
show an increase of 110 per cent in ear corn and 20 tons per acre 
an increase as high as 115 per cent. The increase in stover and 
forage, though not quite so high as in ear corn, was much greater 
than that of an}^ combination of mineral fertilizers. The increase 
in yield of hay in 1905-06-07 was in every case worth more than 
the cost of fertilizers applied, so that the increase in yield of corn 
was clear gain. Figuring on the current market prices for the fer- 



304 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

tilizers, and 50 cents per ton for farm manures, the use of 20 tons 
of farm manure applied twice to timothy but not used for corn, 
gave a gain of $108 per acre in four years. Ten tons of manure 
gave a gain of $72 per acre, and the most profitable combination 
of fertilizer constituents produced a gain of $60.85." 

Lessons from the Old World. — Prof. Douglas A. Gil- 
christ of Armstrong College, Newcastle-Upon-Tyne, 
England, has made many experiments in fertilizing 
meadow and pasture land long laid down in the counties 
of Cumberland, Durham and Northumberland. In a bul- 
letin on ''Effect of Manures on Old Hay Land," issued 
in February, 1906, I find much of great interest and 
value. The soils operated, however, are some of them 
quite different from any commonly used in America, ex- 
cept that we have peaty soils in our northern states. The 
experime)nts found a most interesting change in the 
character of these old meadows consequent on fertiliza- 
tion, the use of basic slag bringing in the better species 
of grass and many clovers. Work of a similar nature, and 
equally significant in results, is under way at the Rotham- 
sted Experiment Station at Harpenden, England, as re- 
ported by Director A. D. Hall. I quote thus from Prof. 
Gilchrist: 

Effects of manures on herbage and soil nitrogen. — "From an anal- 
ysis of the soil of the unmanured plot, it was seen to be of a very 
poor character. It contains 14 per cent of stones and nearly 6 per 
cent of poor, turfy, organic matter. It is remarkably poor in avail- 
able phosphates and potash, and contains only 25 per cent of lime. 
This poorness in lime probably explains the greater effectiveness 
of basic slag than of superphosphate on this soil, and also the much 
worse results with sulphate of ammonia than with nitrate of soda. 
This has been demonstrated in a striking manner at Woburn. Ai 
student took samples of soil, 12" square on the surface and 6" deep, 
from four of the plots in July, 1905, and also collected the herbage 



BRITISH EXPERIMENTS 



305 



growing on each of the samples, and made a botanical analysis of 
them. Following are the results : 

COMPOSITION OF HERBAGE (HAY). 



Plot. 


Manuring. 


Legumes. 


Grasses. 


Weeds. 


Weight of 
dry hay. 


1 


No manure 


Per cent. 
11.5 
23.0 
19.3 

8.5 


Per cent. 

48.7 
53.8 
59.8 
64.3 


Per cent. 
39.8 
23.2 
20.9 
27.2 


Grams. 
19.9 


7 


Slag and kainit 


53.4 


8 


Nitrate, slag and kainit 


49.3 


9 


Sulph. ammonia, slag and kainit 


42.6 



"On Plot 1 there was an abundance of plantain and field wood- 
rush, while the grasses (chiefly bent and fescues) were poor and 
stunted, with no seed stalks, and the legumes were represented only 
by a little birdsfoot trefoil and white clover. Plot 7 had an abund- 
ant sole of white clover herbage, with some red clover and other 
legumes. The grasses were bent and fescties, with some Yorkshire 
fog and cocksfoot, the last being better developed here than on any 
other plot. There was much less white clover on Plot 8, and the 
plants were weak. Sweet vernal and crested dogstail were present, 
in addition to the grasses on the last plot, while plantain and yellow 
rattle were the principal weeds. On Plot 9 white clover was weaker 
than on Plot 8 ; fescues and bent were the chief grasses, with some 
sweet vernal, while plantain and field woodrush were the principal 
weeds. 
NITROGEN IN THE HERBAGE, ROOTS AND SOIL OF DIFFERENT PLOTS. 



Roots and soil to a 
depth of six inches. 



Nitrogen in herbage. 

Nitrogen in roots 

Nitrogen in soil 



Plot 1. 
No manure. 



Per cent. 
.013 

.039 

.107 



Plot 7. 

Slag and 

kainit. 



Per cent. 
.029 

.047 

.112 



Plot 8. 

Nitrate, slag 

and kainit. 



Per cent. 
.031 

.044 

.103 



Plot 9. 
Sulph. ammonia, 
slag and kainit. 



Per cent. 
.032 

.051 

.109 



"The foregoing figures show that the soil is practically no richer 
in nitrogen on Plots 8 and 9, after the continuous application of 
either nitrate of soda or sulphate of ammonia for thirteen years, 



306 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

than on Plot 1, the nnmanured plot. Plot 7, however, continuously 
dressed with slag and kainit, but no nitrogen, for the same period, 
has now about 5 per cent more soil nitrogen in the surface 6" of 
soil than in the same of the unmanured plot, and has also produced 
more than double the weight of hay. From the analysis of the hay 
it has been calculated that the hay removed annually from Plot 7 
contained 18 pounds more nitrogen per acre than that removed from 
Plot 1, or as much nitrogen in 13 years as is contained in 13^ 
cwt. nitrate of soda. There is also an increase of .005 per cent 
nitrogen in the surface 6" of soil of Plot 7 over that of Plot 1, 
which represents about 75 pounds of nitrogen an acre, the equiv- 
alent of nearly 5 cwt. of nitrate of soda. The slag and potash on 
Plot 7, therefore, have indirectly provided as much nitrogen per 
acre during the 13 years as is contained in about 18 cwt. of nitrate 
of soda, and this only takes into account the surface 6" of soil. 
Here is, therefore, an excellent demonstration of how mineral 
manures (slag and kainit) may indirectly make use of nitrogen from 
the air by developing clovers and other leguminous plants. The 
amount of phosphates applied in the slag is double of that in the 
superphosphate ; but in each case the quantity applied is probably 
about the right quantity for giving the best results. The lessons to 
be derived from these thorough and long-continued experiments 
on the manuring of old land hay are : 

"On the heavier soils phosphatic manures are by far the most im- 
portant, and of these basic slag is on the whole the most satisfac- 
tory. On the lighter soils basic slag alone is not likely to be effec- 
tive, but when accompanied by a potask manure, excellent results 
are usually given. Too heavy dressings of superphosphate may do 
considerable harm on some soils. It will be seen when the results 
of several years are taken into account that neither nitrate of soda 
nor sulphate of ammonia is a desirable manure for old land hay. 
The weight of the crop will probably, in the long run, be less, while 
the quality will undoubtedly be poorer. This applies either to these 
manures used by themselves, or in combination with phosphates and 
potash. .Slag only (on the heavier soils) or slag and a potash 
manure — say muriate of potash or kainit — usually develop clover 
and allied plants in a marked degree, and small annual dressings 
of these will continue this development of clover herbage, as is 
shown by many of the experiments. On the whole, n^sither ground 
lime nor common lime has given anything like profitable returns. 



MANURING ENGLISH PASTURES 307 

even several years after application; in fact, these experiments in- 
dicate that basic slag is really the best source of lime for this pur- 
pose, and that it owes its good effects to the lime as well as the 
phosphates that it contains. Half a ton of basic slag contains as 
much lime — partly free and partly in combination — as is contained 
in J4 ton of ground lime. The fineness of grinding of the slag un- 
doubtedly increases the effectiveness of the lime as well as of the 
phosphates it contains. It is, therefore, suggested that for most 
soils the use of basic slag makes the application of either common 
lime or ground lime unnecessary for old land hay or for pasture. 
It is only soils of a peaty character, or those with a good deal of 
rough, matty herbage, or some organic matter, that are likely to give 
a return from these forms of lime. Slag generally supplies the lime 
requirements of all except this class of soils with more profitable 
results. The results of some experiments elsewhere have indicated 
that lime added to slag diminishes the good effects of this latter 
manure. 

"The nitrogen-collecting effects of slag, or of slag and a potash 
manure, are well illustrated by the results at Broomhaugh, where it 
is shown that the amount of nitrogen collected per acre in the sur- 
face 6" of soil in 13 years together with that contained in the extra 
hay grown during that time, amounts to nearly as much as is con- 
tained in 1 ton of nitrate of soda. It is also evident that this natural 
supply of nitrogen has most beneficial effects in the soil, this being 
a marked contrast to the effects of active nitrogenous manures. The 
complex dressings of manures — containing dissolved bones, bone- 
meal, fish meal, slag, superphosphate, kainit, and a very little active 
nitrogen — have given excellent results on loam soils, but have not 
done so well on stiff clay. These results are worth close attention, 
as are also the uniformly good results with bonemeal and kainit 
when continued for 11 years at three centres. When an old land 
hayfield becomes matted with herbage on the surface, harrowing 
with heavy harrows at the time the manures are applied is of great 
benefit, to open up the surface. Tusser, in the sixteenth century, 
in his Tive Hundred Points of Good Husbandry,' advises farmers 
as follows : 

*In meadow or pasture (to grow the more fine), 
Let campers* be camping in any of thine.' 

*Football players. 



308 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

"This suggests that, when the turf of an old land hayfield be- 
comes matted, it should be grazed for one year (or two if necessary) 
with cattle* and that these should be heavily caked, which will, 
by the heavier stock kept, tread down the turf more thoroughly and 
so allow much finer hay being produced in future years. Dung 
gives excellent results on light sandy soils but is not profitable if 
applied to peaty soils, nor is it likely to be so on heavy clay soils. 
This manure develops coarse herbage and usually increases the 
weeds. To sum up, on soils in poor condition an initial dressing 
of y2 ton of slag, with, on the lighter soils, the addition of 2 cwt. 
muriate of potash or about 6 cwt. kainit, is likely to be useful. If, 
however, dung has been used on the lighter soils, the potash manure 
may not be necessary. For the after treatment of these soils, and 
for the general treatment of soils in better condition, the application 
of about 5 cwt. basic slag every three years (with the addition of 1 
cwt. muriate of potash for light soils) is likely to be a good plan 
of manuring per acre for old land hay. On the lighter class of 
soils, 10 tons dung in addition at lengthy intervals should give ex- 
cellent results, in which case the potash manure may be reduced. On 
soils rich in lime, superphosphate may be preferable to basic slag. 
If no dung is used, about 3 cwt. of fishmeal, or other manure con- 
taining organic nitrogen, applied every three years, is likely to be a 
useful addition. The excellent results already obtained on a pasture 
field by feeding Bombay cotton cake, or other cake, on poor pasture 
which has already been improved by basic slag, indicates that the 
best nitrogenous dressing for old land hay is to graze it for one or 
two years and to feed cake to the stock. Basic slag and the potash 
manures will give the best effects if applied early in the winter. The 
distribution of all the manures must be perfect and they should be 
well harrowed in, especially if the herbage is at all coarse and benty. 
The improvement of large areas of poor clay pasture in the north 
of England can be commenced by a dressing of 7 to 10 cwt. an acre 
of basic slag, followed up by the regular feeding of cake to the graz- 
ing stock. It is desirable that tufty pasture should be mown before 
applying the slag. The lighter soils in pasture lying on the sand- 



* Sheep and especially horses are not good for this purpose. 

The aftermath of an old land hay crop should always be eaten 
down and it is an excellent practice to feed cake to the cattle while 
doing- so. On old pasture, which has become very coarse with the 
growth of plants like heather, this heavy treading is essential. 



ENGLISH GRASS EXPERIMENTS 309 

stone rocks of the Mountain Limestone and the Millstone Grit, and 
other light soils poor in lime, may be effectually improved by the 
foregoing treatment, with the addition of, say 2 cwt. of muriate of 
potash to the slag. For the after treatment of these pastures, and 
for the general treatment of those in better condition, the same 
manuring as is outlined for the manuring of old land hay may be 
followed. Dung, however, is not likely to give as good results for 
pasture as for hay-making purposes, but it should be noted that 
dung greatly assists the formation of a sward on thin pasture soils 
which have been recently laid down. When limestone is the under- 
lying rock, superphosphate may be more useful than slag, while the 
feeding of cake will also be useful. The same remarks apply to 
lime as have been made in connection with old land hay." 

Example of Pasture hnprovement in England. — In 
Bulletin No. 8 of the County of Northumberland Edu- 
cation Committee, Prof. Douglas A. Gilchrist presents 
the results of pasture experiments running from 1897 
to 1905. This cohection of data is so strikingly useful 
in giving a basis on which to work and something from 
which to plan work of our own, that I present the greater 
part of it. I regret that the sheep pastured w^ere all 
wethers, since it may be that ewes with lambs would 
have shown greater gains. It is significant, however, 
that one may expect from pasturing wethers during the 
summer season (the reader will find by table the vary- 
ing lengths) gains of from nothing (on unfed pasture) 
to 152 pounds per acre where the pasture has had liberal 
treatment — which in this instance meant cake (cotton- 
seed) fed on the grass — and in one instance 163 pounds 
where basic slag was used. While these results seem 
somewhat small yet it must be conceded that here a gain 
of TOO pounds per acre from pasturing w^ould net at least 
$5 more rental for the land, and with our fresher soils 



310 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

of greater natural fertility than I assume this field to 
have had, we should reach that gain or more. Returns 
from pastures in Great Britain are, in many cases, of eye- 
opening character to an American. I have changed the 
values into American terms : 

"Manures for pasture in Tree Field. — This report deals with the 
complete results of the Tree Field experiments for the nine years 
1897-1905. A slightly modified scheme of treatment was begun in 
1906. The field extends to about 34 acres, and is divided into 11 
plots, each 3 1/20 acres in area. While experiments on crops admit 
of testing the comparative results by the weight of crops produced, 
this cannot be done with pasture. The results of these experiments 
have, therefore, been gauged by the increases in fasted live-weight 
of the sheep on the various plots. The average prices of several 
years indicated that about 7^c. a lb. was a fair figure at which to 
value the increase in live weight of the sheep. Of course this must 
have a higher value on the better than on the poorer plots, but 
granted that this is so the results arrived at would simply be accen- 
tuated. In arriving at the final results, the increase in live weight 
on the untreated plot is deducted from the same on the other plots, 
and the value of this per acre has deducted from it the average 
annual cost of the dressing. The result is the net annual gain or 
loss resulting from each of the dressings. Each plot has been 
treated differently, and has been stocked each year with a suitable 
number of sheep. These have always been carefully selected, and 
graded at the beginning of each season so that each plot might have 
sheep of the same average quality ; and they have been all regularly 
weighed every four weeks during each season, having previously 
been fasted. Cross-bred wethers were purchased in the spring for 
the first three years, and half-bred wethers in the second three years, 
while for the last three years the stock has been mainly half-bred 
and three-parts-bred wethers. The grazing periods have been as fol- 
lows : 1897, June 21-Oct. 11 ; 1898, May 16-Oct. 3; 1899, May 4-Sept. 
21 ; 1900, May 23-Oct. 10 ; 1901, May 10-Sept. 27 ; 1902, May 20-Oct. 
7; 1903, May 15-Oct. 2; 1904, May 17-Sept. 6; 1905, June 5-Sept. 25. 
The first and the last two periods extended to 16 weeks, and the re- 
mainder to 20 weeks. As the last four weeks always gave very low 
increases in the longer periods, a reversion was made to the shorter 



SHEEP GAINS ON GRASS 311 

in the last two years. The numbers of sheep per plot have varied 
according to the quality of the pasture, and have been as follows : 

Plots 123456789 10 11 

1897 8888888SSS_ 



1898* 


10* 


8 


10* 


8 


8 


6 


8* 


8 


8* 


8* 





1899 


8 


6 


12 


8 


8 


6 


8 


8 


8 


8 





1900t 


8 


6 


9t 


9t 


9 


6 


9 


9 


9 


9 


8 


1901} 


6 


6 


9 


9 


9 


4 


9 


9$ 


9 


9 


n 


1902 


5 


6 


9 


9 


9 


4 


9 


10 


8 


9 


12 


1903 


11 


5 


9 


10 


9 


4 


9 


10 


8 


9 


10 


1904 


12 


5 


9 


9 


8 


4 


9 


9 


8 


9 


9 



1905 



"The live weight gains per sheep per week have been of great 
assistance as a guide in stocking the plots, as whenever these be- 
came unduly high more stock was required, and vice versa. Follow- 
ing is a statement of these for the nine seasons : 



Plots 


1 


2 


3 


4 


5 


6 


7 


8 


9 


10 


11 




lbs. 


lbs. 


lbs. 


lbs. 


lbs. 


lbs. 


lbs. 


lbs. 


lbs. 


lbs. 


lbs. 


1897 


1.9 


0.7 


1.8 


1.0 


1.3 


0.9 


1.7 


1.6 


1.8 


1.4 





1898 


2.0 


1.2 


2.2 


2.1 


1.9 


1.3 


2.1 


2.2 


1.5 


1.9 


1.6 


1899 


2.0 


1.1 


2.6 


2.1 


1.9 


1.2 


2.0 


2.1 


2.0 


2.0 


1.3 


1900 


1.5 


1.5 


1.7 


2.2 


2.3 


1.1 


2.3 


2.4 


2.1 


2.2 


2.1 


1901 


1.3 


1.0 


1.7 


1.8 


1.9 


0.9 


1.9 


1.9 


1.6 


1.7 


1.8 


1902 


2.1 


1.7 


2.1 


2.4 


2.1 


1.5 


2.3 


2.5 


2.2 


2.3 


2.3 


1903 


2.6 


1.4 


1.7 


1.8 


1.5 


1.5 


1.7 


1.8 


1.9 


1.8 


1.7 


1904 


2.8 


1.9 


1.7 


1.9 


1.8 


1.5 


1.9 


2.0 


1.4 


1.6 


2.2 


1905 


1.0 


1.2 


1.0 


1.1 


0.9 


0.6 


0.9 


1.2 


0.9 


1.1 


1.2 



"The soil is a poor stiff clay lying on boulder clay. The diagram 
shows the character of the soil and subsoil throughout. This has 
been extracted from a complete soil map, which has been prepared 
from notes made during a careful soil survey of the farm. In 
making this, holes were dug at suitable distances apart and full notes 
made of the characters of the soils and subsoils, every care being 
taken to dig the holes in such positions as would show the average 
depths of the soil, and expose good sections of the soil and subsoil. 
From the diagram it will be seen that the soil is of almost even char- 



* On June 27 Plots 1 and 7 had one added; and Plots 3, 9, and 
10, two added. 

t On June 20 Plot 3 had three added; on July 18 Plot 4 had one 
added, and Plot 8 had two added. 

} On June 8 Plot 8 had three added; on July 13 Plot 11 had three 
added- 



312 



MEADOWS AND PASTURES 




rrvcoj 




Key 
Q. = allui/ia> 

I t Ooi,lc/a r 

• C = c7ay 
g ■■ g<md 

I too. vw 

fe ' hoot 

iS/ ~ hi^one. 

i> ■ So t^ai 

Soils o/jOv/e *»- Su-fc- 
Soils Delccu /Ae /me 

Iree rield. 

soiU%sul>so}ls 



ENGLISH PASTURE STUDIES 313 

acter throughout, except for the variations on Plot 11, which are 
there indicated. This last plot is sheltered by trees on its northern 
and western boundaries, which also renders it not quite comparable 
with the others. Generally speaking the soil of the field varies from 
4" to 12" in depth, is a poor clay and clay loam throughout, and is 
practically all lying on a subsoil of poor yellow boulder clay. Of the 
706,000 acres under crops and pasture in the County of Northum- 
berland, there are over 400,000 acres lying on this boulder clay sub- 
soil, so that the Tree Field results are of great value as a guide to 
the manuring of the bulk of the pastures of the county. That Tree 
Field has one of the poorest of this class of soils may be judged 
from the fact that Cockle Park has not since 1829 been let at more 
than $3.60 an acre, and that this field is one of the poorest on the 
farm, and has at no time been worth more than $2.40 an acre. It 
was under cultivation and grew wheat crops frequently till about 40 
years ago, since when it has been lying under pasture, which before 
1897 was poor and benty and worth only about $0.60 an acre. The 
soil has been analyzed by Mr. Collins, who found it to contain .2 
per cent nitrogen, .07 per cent phosphoric acid, and .5 per cent 
potash. There was soluble in a 1 per cent solution of citric acid, 
.005 per cent of phosphoric acid and .013 per cent of potash. It also 
contained .69 per cent of lime (CaO). For the last five years this 
Plot (Plot 6, untreated) has been stocked with four sheep, but it 
had a larger number in the previous years. The average gain in 
live weight per acre per annum has been 37 1/9 pounds, which at 
7^c. a pound is equal to $2.78 an acre. Live weight increase, how- 
ever, is not worth nearly as much from this plot as from the plots 
which have been improved by treatment, so that the real returns 
are considerably less than the above. In five of the nine years 
the sheep on this plot were worth less at the end than at the be- 
ginning of the season. On Plot 3, 10 cwt. slag applied for 1897 has 
at a gross cost of $5.44 given an average annual gain of $5.34 for 
the nine years, a marvelous return from this single dressing. It had 
the greatest effect in the third season after its application (when it 
gave 163 pounds per acre of live weight increase, worth about $12.24) 
and even in the ninth season afterwards has given 33 pounds of 
live weight increase, worth about $2.44 an acre. Clover develop- 
ment was greatest in the second year (about 20 per cent of the herb- 
age). The poor bent grass has been greatly reduced. The soil has 
been improved in texttire and darkened in color to a marvelous 



314 



MEADOWS AND PASTURES 



extent on this plot, and on all the plots where clover development 
has taken place. 

"On Plot 4, 10 cwt. slag, half applied for 1897 and half for 1900, 



MANURES FOR PASTURE IN TREE FIELD. RESULTS PER ACRE FOR 
NINE SEASONS, 1897-1905. PLOTS 3 1-20 ACRES IN AREA. 



Treatment and its total cost for nine 
years, 1897-1905. 



Average of nine years, 1897-1905. 



10 



Treatment. 



Dec. cotton cake fed on plot, total 
of 597 lbs. 1897-8, again 1903, and 
again 1904* 

Common lime, 4 tons 1897, and 
again 1903 



Basic slag, 10 cwt. 1897. 



Basic slag, 5 cwt. 1897, and again 
1900 

Superphosphate, 28^, 7 cwt. (100 
lbs. phos. acid) 1897, and again 
1900 



Untreated throughout. 



Supers, as on plot 5; and sulph. 
potash, 100 lbs. 1897, again 1899, 
and again 1903 

Supers, as on plot 5; and ground 
lime, 10 cwt. 1897, again 1909, 
and again 1903 

Supers, as on plot 5; and sulph. 
am., 84 lbs. (17 lbs. N.) 1897, 
again 1899, again 1900, again 1903. 

Diss, bones, 6 cwt. (100 lbs. phos. 
ac. and 17 lbs. N.) 1897, and 
again 1900t 



Cost. 



Hay. 



$27.84 

24.00 
5.44 

5.44 
8.64 



14.88 



16.80 



18.00 



15.84 



Cwt. 
191/2 

12% 
25 

2034 

16% 

8% 

17^ 
20?^ 
20 
20 



Live weight increase 
per sheep over plot 6. 



Amount. 



Lbs. 
69 5=9 

12 5=9 
79 8=9 

66 

57 



65 7=9 



79 1=9 



54 



61 1=3 



Value at 
$.075 a lb. 



J5.22 

.94 
5.98 

4.96 
6.26 



4.94 



5.94 



4.06 



4.62 



Annual 
gain or 
loss (— ) 



$2.14 

—1.74 
5.34 

4.32 
3.30 



3.28 



4.08 



2.06 



2A 



* Each lot of cake contained 42 lbs. nitrogen and (assumed) 18 lbs. phos. acid 
and 9 lbs. potash. 

t Plot 10 has received half the total amount of nitrogen applied to plot 9. 
5 cwt slag contains 100 lbs. phosphoric acid. 100 lbs. sulphate of potash con- 
tain 50 lbs. potash. Dissolved bones, 1906, contain 100 lbs. phosphoric acid and 
22.8 lbs. nitrogen. 142 lbs. nitrate of soda contain 22.8 lbs. nitrogen. 

The cost of manures per ton was as follows: Basic slag, $11.43; superphos- 
phate $12.65.; sulphate of potash, $47.20; sulphate of ammonia, $63.26; dissolved 
bones', $28.76. Decorticated cotton cake cost $35.28; common lime, $3.04, and 
ground lime, $4.87. 



SHEEP GAINS ON GRASS 315 

has not been quite so effective, the average annual net gain for the 
nine years being reduced from $5.34 to $4.32. It is evident that the 
application of this amount of slag in a single dressing is likely to 
give the best result in commencing the improvement of poor pasture 
of this character; 10 cwt. slag gave 321 pounds live weight increase 
per acre in the first three years after its application, whereas 5 cwt. 
slag gave only 132 pounds in the same time, considerably less than 
half of the larger dressing. That a second application of slag may 
be most effective is shown by the fact that for three years after the 
first application of 5 cwt. slag the live weight increase amounted 
to 132 pounds, while the same for three years after the second appli- 
cation amounted to 284 pounds. The second application therefore 
more than doubled the results. In the ninth season Plot 4 has given 
an increase of 41 pounds in live weight per acre, as compared with 

LIVE WEIGHT INCREASES IN SHEEP PER ACRE. 1897-1905 

Total on < Over plot 6 (untreated throughout) on plots s 

plots. 12 3 457 8 9 10 11 

1897 37 43 —5 40 7 19 35 32 42 22 — 

1898 53 91 11 118 60 51 68 66 41 64 — 

1899 48 58 —1 163 65 55 59 66 61 58 — 

1900 44 36 16 87 95 93 93 115 84 90 45 

1901 23 28 18 82 84 92 90 121 75 77 108 

1902 41 30 27 86 105 86 94 123 79 98 144 

1903 41 152 7 58 76 50 62 79 58 68 70 

1904 33 152 20 52 61 45 59 65 31 46 73 

1905 14 36 20 33 41 22 32 46 15 30 44 

Total.... 334 626 113 719 594 513 592 713 486 553 484 

annuaf^}^^^'^ 69 5-9 12 5-9 79 8-9 66 57 65 7-9 79 2-9 54 614-9 80K 

33 pounds on Plot 3, which shows that although the net gain has 
been the greater after the single dressing of slag, the unexhausted 
residue is now the greater where half of it was withheld till three 
years later. 5 cwt. slag increased the proportion (not total amount) 
of clovers to the same extent in the first three years as did 10 cwt., 
while in the first year after the second application of 5 cwt. slag, 
the clovers amount to 32 per cent, and even in the ninth year (or 
sixth after the second application of slag) to 17 per cent. While 
therefore the results on this plot have not been quite so good as 
on Plot 3 the clover development has been greater and much better 
maintained. 



316 



MEADOWS AND PASTURES 



"The following figures show the comparative effects of 15 cwt. 
slag on Plot 11, and 10 cwt. slag on Plot 3 for six years after appli- 
cation, the former having been applied for 1900, and the latter for 
1897. (Plot 11 was started three years later than the others and its 
results therefore are not included in the table). The better results 
given by 10 cwt. slag may be partly accounted for by the fact that 
while 10 cwt. slag developed 20 per cent of clover two years after 
its application, 15 cwt. increased it to over 35 per cent, but York- 
shire fog was developed to the extent of nearly 50 per cent four 
years after the heavier dressing of slag, whereas it increased in 
the same time to less than 20 per cent by the lighter dressing. This 
large amount of fog is the likely cause of the smaller returns from 
the heavier dressing of slag in the later years. 

LIVE-WEIGHT INCREASES IN POUND PER ACRE (OVER PLOT 6). 



First year. . . 
Second year 
Third year . . 
Fourth year 
Fifth year.. . 
Sixth year. . . 

Total 

Average . . 



15 cwt. slag. 


10 cwt. slag. 


45 


40 


108 


118 


144 


163 


70 


87 


73 


82 


44 


86 


484 


576 


80% 


96 



"The soil of Plot 11 is more variable in character than that of 
the other plots, and there were slight differences in the treatment 
of this plot in the earlier years, but the fact that the results here 
were probably the same as those on the untreated plot for three 
years before the application of the slag, renders the foregoing re- 
sults fairly reliable. Plot 5 had 7 cwt. superphosphate per acre ap- 
plied for 1897 and the same for 1900. This contained the same 
amount of phosphoric acid and was applied at the same times as 
the two dressings of slag on Plot 4. In the first three years super- 
phosphate gave a total live weight increase of 125 pounds as com- 
pared with 132 pounds from slag similarly applied on Plot 4. Super- 



MANURE ON ENGLISH PLOTS 317 

phosphate gave the better regult in the first year but a poorer in 
the last two years. The second apphcation of superphosphate gave 
271 pounds increase in live weight in the three years after the sec- 
ond dressing had been applied, as compared with 284 pounds by 
slag in that period. That this manure becomes more quickly ex- 
hausted than slag is shown by its giving only 22 pounds live weight 
increase per acre in the ninth season (sixth after the second appli- 
cation) whereas slag gave 41 pounds in the same year. The net 
gain from this plot was $3.30 per acre annually as compared with 
$4.32 from slag similarly applied. With one year's exception (1900) 
clover has not been so well developed on this plot, but at the same 
time the clover increase has been of a satisfactory character, and 
has been well maintained till the ninth year. Plot 10 had 6 cwt. 
dissolved bones in 1897 and the same in 1900. These contained 
the same amount of phosphoric acid as the superphosphate for 
Plot 5, and in addition the former contained 34 pounds nitrogen 
in the two dressings. The sheep have increased in liveweight 
4>2 pounds more per acre annually on this plot than where super- 
phosphate was used, but owing to the less cost of the latter manure 
the net gain per acre annually on this plot is only $2.86 an acre 
as compared with $3.30 from superphosphate. The results also 
show that the lasting effects of dissolved bones correspond very 
closely to that of superphosphate. Both these manures gave their 
best effects more quickly than slag, but did not give such good 
results in the later years. Dissolved bones have not retained 
clovers so well in the later years as superphosphate. 

"Plot 8 has had the same superphosphate as Plot 5, and in 
addition 100 pounds sulphate of potash for each of the years 
1897, 1899 and 1903. The result has been an average increase 
per acre annually of nearly 9 pounds live weight over Plot 5, 
which has just paid the cost of the potash manure, but has given 
no increase in the net profit. It is rather striking that the potash 
manure has not at all increased the clover plants, as there have 
been fewer of these here than on Plot 5, where superphosphate 
only was used. There is evidently nearly sufficient potash in 
this clay soil to supply the pasture requirements, at any rate for 
a considerable time. Plot 9 received the same superphosphate as 
Plot 5, and in addition ^ cwt. sulphate of ammonia for each of 
the years 1897, 1899, 1900 and 1903. As a result the average an- 
nual increase in live weight has been reduced by 3 pounds an 



318 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

acre, and the net gain per annum from $3.30 to $2.06 an acre. In 
the four years that sulphate of ammonia was applied the live 
weight increase was greater by 7 pounds per acre per annum, but 
in the five years this manure was not used the average decrease 
was 13^ pounds (z=z $2.42 per acre per annum). Here we have a 
clear demonstration of bad after-effects of this manure on pasture, 
and a striking evidence against this manure having any residual 
value after the first year it is applied to pasture, showing on the 
contrary that compensation is needed for its bad after-effects. This 
manure has on the average slightly repressed the clover. 

"Plot 2 had 4 tons lime per acre for 1897, and another 4 tons for 
1903. The increase in live weight of the sheep has been only 12^ 
pounds per acre annually, and when the cost of the lime is de- 
ducted, the net loss has been $1.74 per acre per annum. On this 
poor exhausted soil (especially poor in available phosphates) there 
has not been sufficient plant food on which the lime could exert 
its beneficial action. Nor has the lime sweetened the coarse natural 
herbage to any extent, as sedges and mosses are still nearly as 
abundant here as on the untreated plot, while clover development 
has been very slight. Plot 8 has had the same superphosphate as 
Plot 4, and in addition 10 cwt. ground lime in each of the years 
1897, 1899 and 1903. This addition of lime has increased the live 
weight of the sheep per acre per annum by 22^4 pounds, and the 
average annual net gain from $3.30 to $4.08 per acre. The live 
weight increases due to the addition of lime have been about 
the same for the first, second and third years after each appli- 
cation. The average annual increase in live weight from this plot 
is practically the same (about 79 pounds) as that from 10 cwt. slag 
all applied in 1897 (Plot 3), these being the two plots that have 
given considerably the highest increases. The greater cost of the 
superphosphate and lime than of the slag accounts for the consid- 
erably less net gain from the former. The results on Plots 3 and 
8 show that a com.bination of superphosphate and lime has given 
very similar results to slag, and indicate that the lime present rn 
slag is a valuable ingredient. Lime and superphosphate have de- 
veloped clovers on this plot to practically the same extent as slag 
on Plot 4, and considerably more than superphosphate has done on 
Plot. 5. 

"On Plot 1 about 600 pounds per acre of decorticated cotton cake 
have been fed to the sheep in the two years 1897-8, while 600 pounds 



BRITISH PASTURE STUDIES 



319 



I2EE' rf&LO , A\}, monthl y (^o^WS iQQT'iQcs . 
Fifth month ie98-/903 only. 

106 49 117 103 94 37 103 116 91 9Q 



10 s-g 



^ 



4 



9 1 

m 



68 



pI^ 



I 



5-6 



^ 



^ ■ 



i 



Fifth 

four 

[weeks. 



150 



10 



15 J 



.3 9 



22 2 



104- 



5 3 



ili JkS> 



mg 



^ 

^ 



Fourth 
four 

weeks. 



235 



ao 



10 



17-3 




210 



30 
20 

]0 



32-6 



i 



20 3 



20(2 



p 



^ 



192 



29 5 



i 



1 



124 



m i 



^ 



26 9 
^ — 



m 



210 

m 



250 



% 



i i 



s 






■ 



1 



■ 



Third 

four 

weeks 



Second 

four 

weeks. 



40 



30 



20 



10 



m. 



■ 



I 

i 



^ 



B 



i 



I7g 



1 



36 6 



:<^ 



3 4 



365 



f^ 360 



i4 



-^ ^^ 






8 9 



;o 



First 

four 

weekfi. 



320 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

were also fed to them In each of the years 1903 and 1904. The 
result has been an increase of 69^4 pounds in live weight per acre 
annually and a net gain of $2.14 per acre per annum. Taking the 
two years 1897-8 as one for this purpose, the cake in the years 
in which it was fed gave an average increase of 146 pounds in 
live weight per acre per annum, which is equal to $10.94 at 3Kc. a 
pound. As each 600 pounds of cake cost about $9.28 this left a 
gain of $1.66 an acre from feeding the cake in each of these years. 
In the five years that cake was not fed on this plot the average 
live weight increase per acre was about 37y2 pounds, equal to about 
$2.80 in value, a most satisfactory result. There is no doubt that 
the extra treading of the pasture, by the heavier stock in the years 
that the cake was fed, has assisted the manurial ingredients of the 
•cake, passed through the sheep to the land, in improving the pas- 
ture. The good effects of the cake fed in 1897-8 were well main- 
tained for four years thereafter, as even the fourth season after 
the cake was stopped there were 30 pounds an acre of live weight 
increase, worth just over $1.92. The results in 1905, however, were 
not up to expectation as only 36 pounds increase in live weight were 
given, although cake had been fed for the two previous years. For 
every shilling spent on treatment the following returns have been 
given: By slag on Plot 3, $2.28; by same on Plot 4, $1.90; by super- 
phosphate on Plot 5, $1.06; by same and potash on Plot 7, $0.72; 
by same and ground lime on Plot 8, $0.76; by same and sulphate 
of ammonia on Plot 9, $0.48; by dissolved bones on Plot 10, $0.62; 
by lime on Plot 2, $0.16 (loss) ; and by cake fed on Plot 1, $0.40. 

"The Tree Field average monthly and average annual gains cal- 
culated per acre per annum, are shown in the diagram. The best 
results were given in the earlier periods of the season, and were 
comparatively small in the last periods (each of four weeks) when 
grazing was continued for twenty weeks. The climatic conditions 
make the average grazing season quite a short one. The good 
results of slag (Plots 3 and 4), and of superphosphate and lime 
(Plot 8) stand out in a striking manner. Cake fed on Plot 1 also 
shows well, but lime only on Plot 2, contrasted with Plot 6, shows 
little improvement over this the untreated plot." 

There follow very interesting* accounts of the effect 
of the various fertilizers on the composition of the herb- 
age. Briefly, it was seen that any sort of fertilization 



SUMMARY ON FERTILIZATION 321 

decreased the weeds and increased the useful plants, 
• grasses and clovers ; that basic slag increased the clovers 
about 20 per cent and some years up to 35 per cent, 
while weeds were much reduced, and that the plot having 
1,500 pounds of slag resulted in the cleanest pasture 
fullest of grasses and with most clovers. Lime added 
to superphosphate resulted in the most clovers of any 
plot and here also weeds were most effectually repressed. 
Lime alone slightly increased the clovers but had little 
effect on weeds. The feeding of cake increased the 
grasses and repressed the weeds. It was found that 
orchard grass was increased where basic slag was used 
and to a less extent by bonemeal and superphosphate. 
Sheep fescue was increased by ground lime and super- 
phosphate and by cake feeding. As the sheep were 
taken off at the end of summer there was left grass to 
be grazed by cattle. Calling the keep of a cow worth 
24 cents, the plots produced yearly revenues varying 
from 64 cents on the untreated plot to $1.36 on Plot 3, 
$1.20 on Plots 4 and 9, $1.02 on Plot 10, $1 on Plot 
T , $1.08 on Plot 8, 86 cents on Plot 2, 96 cents on Plot 
5, $1.02 on Plot 7. 

SUMMARY OF FERTILIZATION. 

Grasses take from the soil available nitrogen, thrive 
especially well in soils rich in nitrogen, and need also 
phosphorus, potassium and lime. Most iVmerican soils 
contain enough potassium, so the need comes down to 
lime, phosphorus and nitrogen. Grasses can not get 
nitrogen from the air, while clovers can. When the 
conditions are right for clovers and they are well estab- 



322 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

lished, they aid grasses, since they furnish available nitro- 
gen to the land. Clovers revel in a soil well drained, 
somewhat alkaline rather than acid (this is brought 
about by carbonate of lime) and well supplied with 
phosphorus and potassium. The way, then, to secure 
nitrogen in the meadow or pasture is to get clovers 
growing in association with grasses, or to use fertilizers 
rich in nitrogen. Nitrate of soda applied to the grass 
meadow in spring after growth has started is an efficient 
carrier of nitrogen. It should be mixed with acid phos- 
phate or some other carrier of phosphorus. Wheeler and 
Adams of the Rhode Island station recommend for their 
soils in timothy meadow an annual top-dressing of 400 
to 500 pounds of acid phosphate, 300 to 350 pounds 
of nitrate of soda, and 300 to 350 pounds of muriate of 
potash. Leaving out the potassium for soils not defi- 
cient in this element, these proportions would doubtless 
serve well anywhere. Commonly 200 pounds of nitrate 
of soda to the acre is termed a liberal use. Winter top- 
dressing of meadows with manure is effective. The fer- 
tilization of pastures is yet on trial, the principle in- 
volved being to make the land sweet, encourage clovers, 
supply phosphorus and other elements when ne-eded. 
Profitable results in most instances will result from the 
use of basic slag, bonemeal or carbonate of lime and 
acid phosphate. It pays well to spread barnyard manures 
evenly and with moderate thinness over pasture land. 
The feeding of concentrated feeds to cattle on grass 
gives perhaps the best. results of any, and rightly man- 
aged the gain is clear. 

The first step in the improvement of pastures is to 



MANAGEMENT OF GRASS LANDS 323 

drain them. Liming with ground Hmestone may fol- 
low if the soil is lime-deficient. Apparently the use of 
floats or fine-ground phosphatic rock in large amounts 
is efifective through a series of years. If one is in haste 
to improve a pasture first correct soil acidity with lime 
carbonate and disk the surface enough to loosen it some- 
what without destroying the grass. Then fertilize with 
500 pounds to the acre of bonemeal, or with 400 pounds 
of acid phosphate and 100 to 200 pounds of nitrate of 
soda, or use the phosphate or bonemeal alone and sow 
over the land fresh seed, mainly of red and white clovers, 
say 4 pounds of red and 2 pounds of white per acre (less 
will often serve well) and again harrow to cover the 
seed. This should be done in early spring. It will cost 
something thus to fertilize a pasture, but it is doubtful 
whether any outlay on the farm will return better profit. 

MANAGEMENT OF PASTURES. 

It is commonly assumed that a shaded pasture is best 
for grazing animals, and that shade may have some 
value in preventing sunburning of grass. These beliefs 
are fallacious. Animals graze best in pastures with lit- 
tle or no shade, and the grass suffers sooner from drouth 
under trees than in the open sunlight. Tree roots are 
vigorous feeders and absorb moisture and fertility more 
rapidly than can grass roots. There is but one tree 
which will, to my knowledge, benefit the pasture land 
as pasture, and that is the black locust, which, being a 
legume, enriches the soil. It is not worth while to ferti- 
lize grass growing under trees of dense shade; in spread- 
ing manure on grass we always give directions to our 



324 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

men not to drive beneath the oak trees with which the 
pasture is studded. Moreover, what grass there is found 
growing* under the trees has in it Httle sweetness or rich- 
ness, and animals do not care to eat it. No one loves 
trees better than I, and we have them in our pastures, 
but we consider that amount of land covered with trees 
as forest land, park land or what you like, not pasture 
land. I do not like sheep to lie under trees during the 
heats of midday, as they pollute the grass with their 
droppings and afterward myriads of parasites appear, 
and when the grass springs fresh and green lambs nib- 
bling it take them in and are sickened and destroyed. 
While I would not, from aesthetic reasons, counsel the 
destruction of all the trees in the pasture, yet I should 
expect to get larger returns from the pasture that had 
at most only here and there a tree scattered over its 
surface, and most profit of all from the field that had 
not one tree, but where animals grazed in the open and 
took refuge from the sun if at all in airy sheds which 
might be situated on the highest land and whence manure 
would be taken from time to time and scattered over the 
field. The waste of manure under trees and in pond 
holes and streams from pastured cattle is a serious drain 
on the resources of the land and one that no field can 
forever safely bear. 

Turning to Grass. — Once I ranched in Utah and we 
had 2,000 cattle running over the desert hills in winter, 
eating the dry grass. Commonly they kept their flesh 
fairly well, though after the snow had gone they must 
make long marches over hard and stony trails to water 
and back again to grass. We lost few from starvation. 



WINTER Pasturing 325 

however, until grass came green in spring, then sud- 
denly the cattle grew weak and our troubles began. It 
was literally true that lo times as many cattle starved 
to death after green grass came as before that time, 
though the weather was much more favorable then. The 
fact is that the first upthrust of the grass contains little 
more than colored water; there is need of long days of 
sun to put any sweetness or strength into it, and this 
is as true of clovers and all plants grazed by beasts. It 
is often well to allow cattle or sheep or horses to roam 
over the pasture during winter; it is well if they are 
fed on it, since thus the pasture is enriched, but the 
moment the grasses begin to spring into growth at the 
advent of warm weather, every animal should be taken 
off and confined to the bams and yards. It is better 
for them, because they will then continue to eat their 
dry hay and grain with good relish. Their gains will 
be far greater than if they were distracted by the lure 
of tempting morsels of green grass, about as fattening 
as pickles to the schoolgirl. It is better for the grass, 
also, because having been besieged all winter by cold 
and darkness, it now needs a chance to stretch up into 
the sunlight and elaborate its sap, strengthen its root 
system, and in general organize itself for the season's 
campaign. There may be three times the weight of 
grass taken from a properly managed pasture than will 
come from one gnawed down right to the earth from 
the day it first turns green in the spring. I am con- 
vinced that this one almost criminal blunder of too early 
stocking, more than any one other thing, has tended to 
make pastures unprofitable. Many evils result from the 



326 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

practice. Weeds are encouraged, since through animals 
gnawing the palatable grasses weeds get started on the 
almost bare land, then the soil has too little shade and 
the sun dries it out badly. Probably twice as much 
available moisture is retained in the pasture that is al- 
lowed to get a good strong start in the spring, as is found 
in the pasture grazed down hard from the start. In 
short, make a soil mulch of the grass itself. You can 
not cultivate grass land; the one thing probably that 
you can do to help retain, moisture is to allow the grass 
to mulch the ground. And even here one must use 
discretion. 

Conditions vary according to localitit;3. There are 
moist regions where it is safe to pasture rather closely — 
where, in fact, the grass falls and becomes matted to- 
gether, so that it no doubt loses its sweetness if not 
grazed fairly close. Most of America, however, has hot 
suns and dry weather so that the pastures need moisture 
more than any other thing, and the one way to main- 
tain it is to avoid close gr-dzing until in midsummer or 
a little later, when it becomes necessary. I have seen 
bluegrass in north Missouri make a dense mat a foot 
thick over the ground and cattle fattened well on it. On 
the other hand Prof. Lyman Carrier of the Virginia 
station writes as follows : 

"I have been making some notes on pasture management in this 
part of the state and a few things seem to be of importance. One 
is that heavy pasturing in this section is better than Hght. This 
seems to be contrary to the general opinion of writers on the subject. 
We can ruin our pastures by leaving them ungrazed for a year or 
two. I do not mean to say that the pasture should be grazed early 
in the spring before the grass gets a good start or late in the fall 



SHIFTING GRAZING STOCK 327 

after growth has stopped, but during the summer I do not believe 
there is much danger from over-grazing, but, on the contrary, heavy- 
grazing will give the best sod. We are working on the matter of 
weed eradication and have seen various instances where broom 
sedge and other troublesome weeds have been destroyed by feed- 
ing a haystack on the infested area and also by liberal dressings of 
stable manure." 

This indicates that the question requires quite local 
interpretation. Deeper in the Virginia mountains, in 
a moister region, perhaps, lives Henry Stuart, a leader 
among cattle grazers. It has been his experience that 
there should be ''good grass in June and just enough 
cattle on it so that the grass keeps gaining a little all 
the rest of the summer." Thus he makes his export 
steers, and after they have gone he puts younger, thinner 
cattle on the pasture to graze in the fall. 

Rotate Animals in Pasture. — Where possible it is best 
to feed off the pasture with different classes of animals 
in rotation. Horses like one class of herbage and cows 
a different sort, while sheep eat things that both horses 
and cattle reject. If then the pasture can be grazed al- 
ternately by each class of stock, or if they can live peace- 
ably together, the whole field wdll be well eaten down 
together and few spots left to grow up untouched. Sheep 
also will aid greatly by keeping down the weeds. If 
brush comes in to trespass, goats will aid in destroying 
it. Naturally, the animals first put in take the cream, 
the sweetest clovers, the best herbage, and those coming 
later may not thrive quite so well unless rains cause 
the swift upspringing of the tidbits again. There is 
one great advantage in rotating animals on pasture — 
they do not take parasites from each other, so the sheep 



328 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

do not by the germs they may drop on the grass en- 
danger horses or cattle, and vice versa. 

Managing the Rank-grozving Spots. — On good strong 
soils there will be spots where grasses will stand un- 
eaten, while other places w^ill be gnawed too close. This 
is a serious waste of pasture land, the richest soil doing 
no duty while the poorest is overworked. The best 
remedy may be to mow off the rank spots, setting the 
knife as close to the ground as it can well run, and mak- 
ing into hay the herbage taken off. It will commonly be 
greedily eaten in winter. I have even mowed it and left 
it stand in the field in large cocks and seen it all eaten, 
nearly, the perverse animals that had steadily refused the 
grass while it was green crowding around to eat it after 
it was made into hay, neglecting the green and growing 
grass to so do. I suppose that animals are lazy enough 
to like part of their feed cut for them. On soils need- 
ing lime, after cutting off the herbage from these rank- 
growing spots, one can lime them well. Or it may be 
that they need drainage, though there is no doubt at all 
that animals will refuse to pasture down places that 
need neither liming nor drainage, some difference in the 
flavor of grasses determining their choice. 

Weeds in Pastures. — The best way to exclude annual 
weeds from pastures is to feed the grasses. The one 
weed that may come no matter how good the grass is is 
ragweed (Artemesia) and this will be eaten by sheep if 
they have access to it. To help the pasture, run the 
mower over it if need be. Cockleburs are troublesome 
in some pastures, but if they are kept mown off for two 
years they will very nearly disappear. This is true of 



THE WEED NUISANCE 329 

most annual weeds and some perennials. One can set 
the mower so high that it will not especially injure the 
grass. Ironweeds (Vernonia noveboracensis) are trouble- 
some perennials. After 40 years of more or less persist- 
ent struggle with them in one of our pastures they are 
still present, though much reduced. Mowing off just 
as they come into bloom, and feeding with sheep which 
eat off their leaves wdien young and tender, seem the 
available remedies. Iron weed comes in the best soil 
and troubles over a very wide area ; its roots are very 
large and strong. Mulleins are biennials and are de- 
stroyed by pulling or mowing just as they bloom. Coarse 
rank weeds such as horseweeds (Ambrosia triUda) and 
jimpson (Stramoninin) are easily destroyed by mowing; 
in fact, the mowing machine is a most effective ally of 
the pastoralist. Some weeds are destroyed by sprink- 
ling repeatedly with strong brine. The nettle is thus 
affected, as also is poison ivy (Rhus) and the horse net- 
tle (Solamim Carolincnsc). This latter weed is a dis- 
tressing one, and is now invading all of the central 
states. It has not one use nor redeeming feature, nor, 
after it is established all over one's farm, can it ever be 
eradicated; so it should be fought to a finish at the out- 
set of its invasion. One of the most persistent and 
troublesome weeds is spearmint. Mowing twice during 
the season greatly injures it, and will in time perhaps 
destroy it. Hoarhound should be pulled by hand as soon 
as it appears. Canada thistles; who can in a sentence 
dispose of them? In England farmers content them- 
selves w^ith cutting them down once or twice a year to 
prevent their seeding. They will continue, however, 



330 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

to Spread from roots. Canada thistles may be destroyed, 
if there are but few, by continually putting salt on them, 
and as soon as they reappear they should be seasoned 
again. Cattle will eat them. They may be destroyed 
also by persistently cutting them off just under the 
ground with a sharp hoe. A field badly infested may be 
cleaned by being sown to alfalfa; the frequent cutting 
of the alfalfa, and its competition for soil moisture, 
cause the weed's destruction. One must, however, make 
the soil right for the alfalfa or it will not be able to do 
the task. Afterward, if the land is desired for pasture, 
it may be sown to grasses without disturbing the alfalfa, 
and soon it will be more richly set and more productive 
than before. 

The common or bull thistle is a biennial and easily 
destroyed by cutting and preventing its seeding. My 
father thought these thistles worth letting alone because 
of their soil-enriching powers. Doubtless their large 
tap roots may open the soil, and the rest it gets where 
the thistle stands has some effect. Of docks he felt dif- 
ferently, and dug them out religiously. He had a story 
of a blind man who wished to buy land and was driven 
into the field with his old horse. "Just tie' him to a 
dock, will you?" he asked the would-be land seller. If 
the man replied, "Aye, I can do that easily enough," the 
sale was all off, but if he replied, "There's no docks 
hereabout but here's a thistle that will hold him," the 
blind man closed the deal for the land forthwith. 

English farmers sow some yarrow in their pastures; 
sheep graze it somewhat, though in America it seems to 
be practically uneaten and is a somewhat troublesome 



MOSSES AND FERNS 331 

weed. Digging it out or killing it by salting seems the 
remedy. Plantains and weeds in the meadow are eaten 
in pastures pretty well. The daisy (Heliopsis helian- 
thoides) is a bad weed in eastern meadows and pastures. 
It thrives in soils deficient in lime and fertility, and will 
not persist in rich soils well grassed. The remedy there- 
fore is to add to fertility and crowd it out, meantime 
cutting before it seeds. 

Mosses and Ferns. — In northern latitudes on moist 
land there is often rank growth of ferns and large-grow- 
ing mosses, which so completely occupy the land that 
there is no space left for grass. These are most trouble- 
some on rather poor land deficient in lime. The remedy 
for moss is drainage, lime and enriching. Ferns may be 
slowly killed by repeated mowings or they may need 
thorough cultivation following deep plowing. 

British people are great students of pastures. They 
grow large numbers of grasses, clovers and other 
plants together, believing that by such means they 
get the most good. They may be right for their own 
localities, though it would seem that the highest quality 
in a few plants would be more useful than more medi- 
ocrity. With the view to determining the relative value 
of different species of grasses, and of different species 
of plants other than grasses upon the permanent pastures 
of England, the Royal Agricultural Society appointed a 
commission, which, after investigating the subject for 
several years, reported that in different pastures the spe- 
cies of cultivated grasses ranged from ii to lOO per 
cent, of legumes from zero to 38 per cent and miscel- 
laneous plants, so-called weeds, from zero to 89 per cent. 



332 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

No correlation whatever was found between the value 
of the pasture as shown by the beef and mutton pro- 
duced, and the botanical character of the herbage. Pas- 
tures with widely varying proportions of grasses and 
other plants produced equally good results; while pas- 
tures with the same percentages of grasses and other 
plants gave widely different results, according to Hunt. 

In Great Britain it is common to sow such plants as 
burnet (a plant of the rose family), chicory, (a deep- 
rooting plant that is supposed to benefit soils by its deep 
root), yarrow and many others. Of all these we can 
only render the Scottish verdict, "Not proven." To the 
writer it would seem that two or three grasses best 
adapted to a soil, with as many clovers, will commonly 
give better results than more, and, in fact, the seeding 
of rare grasses is almost impossible owing to the poor 
germination of many of the seeds found on the market. 

What Farmers Buy in the Middle West. — Men whom 
I know have sold grass and clover seeds for several years 
and the following figures, showing what is called for, 
may prove interesting. They make a specialty of alfalfa 
seed and advertise it, so it would be misleading to com- 
pare their sales of alfalfa seed with the sale of other 
seeds, but excepting that many men buy clover and 
timothy seeds of their local seedsmen, the list should 
be in line with the demand. In percentages they sold 
of red clover, loo; mammoth clover, 32; alsike clover, 
36 ; crimson clover, 32 ; white clover, 6.4 ; sweet clover, 
8 (the demand rapidly increasing) ; timothy, 88; brome 
grass, 16; all the fescues, 16; Kentucky bluegrass, 10.4; 
redtop, 6.4; orchard grass, 6.4; Canada bluegrass, 4.8; 



GORSE IN PASTURES 333 

English ryegrass, 1.6; tall oatgrass, 1.6; Hungarian mil- 
let, .32; German millet, .8; hairy vetch, .8; spring vetch, 
.24, and alfalfa, 800. 

What Might Be Introduced into Pastures. — In Nor- 
mandy and parts of southwestern England apple trees 
are grown in pastures, not so much for the purpose of 
feeding the animals as for making cider. Still, I have 
often thought that if sweet apples were grown in pas- 
tures there would be good profit resulting, and the idea 
is worth thought in regions where apples grow easily. 
Persimmons grow spontaneously in all the region south 
of the .40th parallel, and their fruit is relished by pigs 
and sheep, so in clearing pastures in the South I have 
directed that persimmon trees be spared, but thinned 
somewhat. Mention has been made of the black locust 
tree, the leaves of which seem to enrich poor soils and 
make bluegrass come. The best grass on many a hill- 
side in Kentucky and the Virginias is in the groves of 
locust trees. I am acquainted with no other tree which 
has so much helpfulness. Most trees are ''poison" to 
atmospheric nitrogen; they are giant clovers. I should, 
if I lived in a climate as mild as that of Virginia or 
Kentucky, introduce the furze or gorse plant, and get 
it growing on my poorest hillsides, as it does so freely 
on poor hillsides in Europe. Gorse is a leguminous, spiny 
shrub, with tender, nourishing young stems in the spring 
and during th6 growing season. It affords much brows- 
ing for cattle and sheep, enriches land somewhat and 
beautifies a landscape when blooming in spring. In 
Scotland there is a saying that "when the gorse is out 
of blossom, then love is out of fashion," but in Scotland 



334 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

they say that the golden gorse blooms every month of 
the year! The broom, too, is a legume; is eaten more 
or less by sheep, is a lovely shrub, and should be started 
in wild, rocky pasture lands in mild climates, as indeed 
it is in the Willamette Valley in Oregon and in Bedford 
county, Va. One can buy seed of either gorse or broom 
of European seedsmen. Gorse is sown as a hedge plant, 
on the tops of earthen walls, in Guernsey and Jersey, and 
its branches bake the bread of the cottager after they 
have served their purpose of keeping the cold wind from 
the browsing cows. Gorse needs inoculation, probably, to 
succeed in America. There are other things that we 
could bring in to special localities with climates suiting, 
and in time our pasture flora will no doubt be consider- 
ably enriched. 

Sir Walter Gilhey's Idea on Overstocking. — Sir Wal- 
ter Gilbey, a careful student in England of the horse, 
seems to have found clue to the disappointment that so 
often follows attempts at horse breeding. There will 
be seen, for instance, that one or two wonderful horses 
have come from certain pastures and then men will un- 
dertake to produce there many colts, hoping that they 
also will have great excellence. In this they are fre- 
quently disappointed. To quote Sir Walter: "I trust 
that my practical experience as a breeder of most descrip- 
tions of stock may be held to excuse me for offering 
an opinion on so important a subject as the raising and 
feeding of blood stock. Whenever large breeding studs 
have been established, I have found, in every instance, 
that after a period the animals have failed to maintain 
their original standard of excellence. I am convinced 



PASTURES INJURED BY HORSES 335 

that their deterioration has been due to the overgraz- 
ing of the land whereon the dams and young stock were 
pastured — overgrazing, or 'staHng/ of the land reacting 
unfavorably on the horses; and that soundness, bone, 
muscle and stamina depend very largely on the treatment 
of the dams and young animals which, above all things, 
need fresh and untainted grazing." 

I should be glad if every horseman would read the 
whole of Sir Walter's thought-arousing little book. Here 
are some of the thoughts : In nature horses graze wide 
and are ever changing their grazing ground. In order 
to be kept in their full health and vigor they still require 
to be shifted from pasture to pasture, and their thrift 
is immensely increased if they are allowed to run where 
no horses ran the preceding year. Mention is made of 
customs in Norfolk where one horse and no more is al- 
lowed to graze over 6 acres. Keeping mares in re- 
stricted pastures, even with good feeding in addition, 
commonly results in weak foals or disorders of one sort 
or another. That elusive but very real thing called 
"quality" is developed on new pastures or on pastures 
where but few horses run, and the range is very wide. 
After observing that these pastures produced fine animals 
men have often stocked them more heavily with greater 
numbers of horses and have been amazed to see that they 
did not again reproduce animals of like remarkable parts 
and qualities. To quote again, "From the time of her 
conception she (the mare) should be allowed to run in 
fresh, untainted pastures; if in pastures where horses 
have not been for the last three years, all the better. 
After foaling the same policy should be adopted towards 



336 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

the mare and her foal as regards fresh herbage. The 
foal from its weaning should be treated in as natural 
a manner as possible; turned out and fed on pastures 
where the herbage is succulent, and allowed a free run 
at his pleasure. Not more than three yearlings should 
be turned out in any one pasture, and the field should 
not be of less extent than 15 acres." 

I have seen many instances to prove the soundness of 
this position. On a ranch where I once lived in Utah 
the mares ranged very wide, having no restrictions. 
Though not always w^ell fed they were remarkably 
healthy and prolific, and lacked little of dropping 100 
per cent of foals and all of them were strong and healthy 
at birth. I have seen men make strenuous effort to 
produce draft colts when they had very small but good 
pastures; they kept the mares well and got them in foal 
fairly successfully, but raised very few colts, while neigh- 
boring farmers who had wider pastures and fewer horses 
had "luck" and raised many colts. There seems some- 
thing in the restricted range and the grazing of mares 
after one another that lowers vitality in the offspring, 
even if it does not noticeably lower it in the mares them- 
selves. If one must use small and overstocked pastures 
for mares one should at least endeavor to lessen the over- 
stocking by keeping the geldings off some of them and 
putting the mares when possible in meadows or outlying 
grass. I have seen in the West large bands of draft 
mares turned in alfalfa meadows with grass pastures 
adjacent and they foaled well and the colts throve. Wide 
pastures for pregnant mares seems the safe rule. Pas- 
ture of some kind seems most essential. Mares confined 



TETHERING ON GRASS 



337 




338 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

to the stable with no access to grass seldom drop strong 
foals. 

Pasturing by Tethering. — In France, the Channel 
Islands, Denmark and other countries of Europe it is 
common practice to tether cows and horses (the latter 
more rarely) in pastures, letting them eat the grass clean 
as they advance. Twice daily the tethering stakes are 
taken up and moved forward, maybe no more than a 
foot and maybe two feet or more, depending on the 
length of the tethering chain and the quality of the grass. 
The practice is a good one where labor is cheap enough 
to give the animals attention and where the climate per- 
mits. Water is taken to the cows in some instances ; in 
other places they are led away to water. This system 
insures even pasturing of all the land and the deposition 
of the manure where made. I do not think that we are 
ready to adopt it yet in America except in places where 
dairy cows are kept, pastures are rich and there is labor 
enough to give them attention. In Denmark I have seen 
ewes tethered behind the cows, eating what they had 
left, while their lambs running free went forward and 
ate what pleased them. The results were good, as all the 
animals throve, though I should suppose that the cows 
would ordinarily leave too little to keep the ewes well. 

The Hurdling System. — The visitor to rural England 
is amazed to see the wonderful flocks of sheep kept 
often on comparatively little land. I have seen 2,500 
Hampshire sheep kept on 1,400 acres of fairly good land 
in England. Most of these sheep were in hurdles. Brief- 
ly, the hurdling system is this : The farmer has panels 
of movable fence; in England they are commonly made 



THE HURDLING SYSTEM 339 

of small round poles and twigs ; here they could easily be 
made of light wood which should be creosoted. He 
encloses an acre, more or less, of good forage which 
may be of pasture grass, vetches, rape or' a mixture of 
forage crop. In this enclosure sheep are penned until 
they have eaten the land nearly bare. It is common prac- 
tice to enclose enough so that it is eaten off daily, so 
that each evening the flock is given fresh pasturage. If 
there are lambs, two enclosures are made, and through 
creeps the lambs are allowed to ''go forward'' into the 
enclosure farthest into to the field, the ewes remaining 
behind but being turned the next day where the lambs 
had been, while the lambs again go forward to fresh 
grazing. There is no better manner than this of feeding 
off stuff, if one has time to attend the sheep and move 
the hurdles. In America there is often some need of 
shade, also, which can often be best afforded by letting 
the flock come at lo o'clock to the cool barn sheds, which 
should be airy and clean. At 3 they would go again to 
their hurdles. Temporary shelters from the sun are 
also used in America; even tents have been in use, but 
they are troublesome and subject to windstorms. In a 
system of feeding off crops by hurdling there is little 
waste, small danger of the animals becoming parasitic, 
and thus the greatest bloom and health are seen in the 
flock. It is a system practiced by some well-known ram 
breeders in the United States, and wath the best results. 
After the land has been eaten over it is common in 
England to plow it and sow to Swede turnips, crimson 
clover, winter vetches or some other quick-growing crop 
for later use. 



340 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

Sheep on Permanent Pastures. — Sheep in the West 
have few diseases apart from starvation and predatory 
animals. In eastern pastures they find enemies far more 
deadly and insidious, the internal parasites. He who 
conquers the parasite has nothing else to fear in sheep- 
farming; the other problems are simple and easy. The 
history of the stomach worm, the parasite creating the 
worst ravages in American flocks, is briefly this : It is a 
small worm about y^" long inhabiting the fourth stomach 
of the sheep or lamb. It causes anaemia or bloodlessness, 
disordered digestion, scours, constipation and in lambs 
death and in old sheep emaciation. The worms live from 
year to year in the bodies of the old ewes; their eggs 
are deposited on the ground, hatch and the small worms 
develop and crawl up a little way on the green grass. 
Lambs eating them become afflicted and a whole train 
of terrible consequences ensues. 

Stomach worms have done more to deprive eastern 
pastures of sheep than all other causes combined. There 
are certain things that will decrease their work. Re- 
membering that ewes carry over the germs, one can con- 
fine ewes and lambs to the dry lot and barn until the 
lambs are old enough to wean. If the ewes are bred 
for early lambing the lambs will be old enough to wean 
by the time grass is sweet and strong. The lambs may 
then be taken to fresh pasture with no old sheep mixed 
with them. If the pasture had in it no sheep at all for 
12 months or more all the better. Thus treated lambs 
will commonly be clean and thrifty. There is little dan- 
ger of infestation in dry lots, though one should early 
treat scouring ewes with worm-eradicating medicine. One 



TOBACCO FOR SHEEP ON GRASS 341 

and a half ounces or more of coaltar dip diluted with 6 
ounces of water and administered to a ewe is said 
effectually to rid her of stomach worms. Scouring ewes 
may infect through soiling of the teats. Some shepherds 
practice separating the ewes and lambs each day, put- 
ting them together in the yard at night and the ewes in 
one field and the lambs in another. This has given clean 
and thrifty lambs. 

Sown Pastures for Sheep. — The most practical thing 
perhaps is to use only sown pastures for sheep. There 
seems little danger of infestation when ewes and lambs 
graze rape or red clover or oats or vetches. The reason 
for this immunity is probably that the animals do not 
graze so close to the ground as when on bluegrass or 
other permanent grasses, so do not so readily take in the 
worms or germs. Even here there is fear lest the sheep 
have access to small plots of old grass, maybe along 
fences or in yards to which they are given access and 
which though small in extent may infect all the grazing 
animals. When one is turning to fresh and clean pas- 
ture one must strictly avoid letting animals have access 
to old and infected spots. 

Feeding Tobacco to Sheep on Pasture. — Tobacco feed- 
ing has come into favor and seems to have much merit. 
Tobacco will not always eradicate worms in a sheep, 
but it will often serve to prevent their lodgement. One 
can use stems or "trash" or any waste tobacco. There 
is no fear of their eating too much; they should be given 
all that they will take. I have found that to dip the to- 
bacco in not very strong salt water, taking out at once 
and putting it in boxes where the sheep can have access to 



342 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

it and feeding no other salt, is an effectual way of get- 
ting them to eat a good deal of tobacco. Some will 
naturally eat more than others. I have testimony from 
many men that this treatment has been most helpful. 
Where tobacco dust is fed, one may sprinkle it lightlty 
with salt to encourage sheep to eat a good deal of it. 

Management Insuring Healthy Flocks. — Two men in 
America fought stomach worms all through the disastrous 
years of the 90's, w^hen little was known to help; they 
found light, they conquered the pests in a measure, and 
kept on keeping sheep and studying flock management. 
Finally each made a journey to England and studied the 
conditions there with a view to solving the problem for 
America. There they found hurdling the best answer 
to the question. Independently of each other they reached 
the same conclusions as to the practical solution of the 
question in America. Dr. H. B. Arbuckle of West Vir- 
ginia and the writer were the two men. But they wish 
to give all due credit to the Department of Zoology of 
the Bureau of Animal Industry at Washington for at 
least giving accurate details of the history of the Hsemon- 
chus contortus (formerly called Strongylus contortus), 
for without the details that we now have no certain plan 
could have been formulated. The basis of this plan is 
the fact that lambs are born free from parasitic infection ; 
they are healthy. It is only necessary to keep them 
healthy by preventing infection. Their mothers carry 
over in their bodies the germs that will infect them in 
the form of mature stomach worms, which when ripe 
pass away in the droppings and thus infest the pasture. 
When the temperature is below 40° F. the eggs will not 



SHEPHERDING AND PASTURING 343 

hatch. When it is above that they will hatch out in a 
few hours or in a week or so, depending upon how warm 
it is. Freezing or drying soon kills the unhatched eggs. 
So it is seen that ewes will not pollute a field in winter, 
their droppings are sure to be soon frozen, at least in 
the region where sheep are mostly kept. But if the tiny 
worm hatches from the egg it feeds for a time upon the 
material of the manure and continues to grow till it is 
about one-thirtieth of an inch long. Then it creeps up 
on a blade of grass and w^aits to be swallowed by some 
1-amb, after that it finishes its growth within the fourth 
stomach of the lamb, and, incidentally, finishes the lamb 
as well. The ewe flock should be treated for stomach 
worms. This is best done in the fall, when they come 
from pasture. It may be again done in the spring before 
their lambs come. The use of some of the coaltar dips, 
in small doses, much diluted, will eventually be recog- 
nized as most efficient. This treatment alone has doubled 
the weight of lambs in some experiments in Kentucky. 
Next, the flock should at the approach of spring weather 
be confined to the yard and shed. There are two reasons 
for this : it is better for the grass, and thus in the long 
run better for the flock, and there is no contamination of 
land over which the lambs will later feed. If it were 
possible wholly to eradicate the w^orms from the ewes 
by treatment this care would not be needed, but unfortu- 
nately it seems almost impossible with our present knowl- 
edge to kill all of the worms by any medication. While 
confined to the yard the lambs will probably be born. It 
is essential that the flock be well fed at this time, so that 
the ewes will be full of milk. If desired they may be 



344 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

provided a run to a rye-iield, or to some grass pasture 
that will not be afterwards used that summer, to help 
stimulate the milk flow. By May 15 probably the grass 
will be so forward that the flock may be turned out for 
good. Now begins the new management. 

Instead of turning the flock to a large pasture to 
roam over it at will turn them on a very small part of 
it. How best to manage this will depend on circum- 
stances. I think that in our land of small supply of 
labor and much hurry and turmoil during the summer 
season it is safest to divide the pastures by permanent 
wire fences. These are not costly, and need not be very 
high. We will, then, turn the whole flock together into 
the first division; none shall be scattered about. Of 
course there may be two flocks, one with lambs and a 
dry flock, but the dry flock had better be put apart 
somewhere or else put with the ewes. It will not do to 
let anything interfere with the regular rotation of these 
pastures. Now once in this pasture the flock will be al- 
lowed to eat it down close to the ground. That will not 
hurt the grass, for all will go in a short time and the 
grass may spring up again. This is how pastures are 
often managed in England by hurdles. 

Dr. Ransom says that sheep may probably be safely 
left on May pasture for two weeks. We will shorten 
this time to 10 days, to make sure. That is, the germs 
falling to the earth could not before 10 days find their 
way back into any sheep or lamb, and we are going to 
move the flock on before they are able to get in. Now 
in the division between this pasture and the next we will 
place creeps so fixed that the lambs can readily pass 



SHEEP PARASITES IN GRASS 345 

through to the next enclosure. This they will early learn 
to do, and so they will be eating the fresher parts of the 
herbage in advance of the ewes. In lo days then the 
whole flock will go forward one pasture, the lambs yet 
having access to the fresher feeding on ahead. Doctor 
Ransom says we shall need for this sure treatment the 
following divisions : For May, 2 pastures ; for June, 4 
pastures ; for July, 4 pastures ; for August, 4 pastures ; for 
September, 3 pastures ; for October, 2 pastures. That 
makes 19 enclosures in all and insures that the flock shall 
be kept in absolute freedom from infections throughout 
the year. However, one will not absolutely need so many 
enclosures as that. By June many of the lambs will be 
ripe, by July many of the others, and even when the lambs 
are born late, when managed in this way they should all be 
ripe as peaches by the middle of August. After the lambs 
are gone the ewes can be managed a little less carefully, 
especially if they are in strong condition, though there is 
a comfort in knowing that every stomach worm germ 
that falls to the earth must die from lack of a host. 

To make this thing doubly successful put flat-bot- 
tomed troughs in the pastures ahead, where the lambs 
run, and put feed in them ; any sort of grain, corn, oats, 
barley, bran, coarse-ground or broken cake or oilmeal. 
Thus the lambs will grow like weeds and pay many 
times over for their grain. Thus more sheep may be 
carried on the same ground than would be possible under 
ordinary treatment. There is scarcely any limit to the 
number of sheep that can be safely kept on an eastern 
farm under this system of management. The limit is, 
of course, the size of the farm and the amount of grass. 



346 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

Even this can be greatly helped by soiling. Racks may 
with great profit be placed in the fields and the ewes fed 
with green crops, fresh mown oats, peas, clover or alfalfa. 
Thus twice as many ewes may be kept as the grass alone 
wall support. I suggest that about 400 ewes would keep 
one man nicely busy in caring for them and their lambs, 
hauling water to them, soiling somewhat, and feeding 
the lambs. I would not hesitate to undertake the man- 
agement of 400 ewes on one farm in any part of the 
cornbelt, the regions most infested with stomach worms. 
There is no business more sure of profit than this. Lambs 
sell remarkably well and the prospect is that as the w-est- 
ern ranges are diminished they will sell better, for the 
ravages of the stomach worm deter eastern farmers from 
going into the business. The two serious obstacles to be 
overcome are: first, the question of water and next, 
the question of shade. Water is readily hauled in mount- 
ed tanks as it is usually in England. Shade is not abso- 
lutely essential. I have seen very fat sheep in the San 
Joaquin Valley of California confined to the alfalfa mea- 
dows and with no shade whatever. Probably a system 
of canvas sheds, long and narrow, would not be very 
expensive nor too troublesome for one man to move 
and set up unaided. Any sort of grass will serve. Ken- 
tucky bluegrass is to be preferred, perhaps brome grass 
is better, clovers may be utilized and oats sown to be 
grazed off, with peas. 

I do not hesitate to say that I look forward to seeing 
many sheep farms established in the cornbelt, each carry- 
ing from 200 to 500 ewes and managed nearly under this 
system. I feel confident that no other branch of hus- 



NODULAR DISEASE IN SHEEP 347 

bandry holds forth better prospects. It should be borne 
• in mind that the earlier the lambs are born the sooner 
they will be gone to market, and thus the fewer pastures 
will be needed. Also the market is usually best in June 
and July, after a flood of fed lambs has passed and be- 
fore the new crop from the ranges has started to come. 
Besides the stomach worm there is the worm that makes 
the nodular disease of the intestines. Any observant 
man who has dissected a mature sheep has often noticed 
on the small intestines little nodules or ''knots." These 
are really small tumors, filled with a greenish, cheesy 
substance. They do not do much harm when they are 
few in number but the trouble is a cumulative one and 
the numbers of the nodules increase until after a time 
digestion and absorption are much interfered with. Some- 
times parts of the intestines become calcified ; that is, so 
impregnated with lime salts that they are almost like 
stone. Death ensues in a longer or shorter time from 
the nodular disease. It does not work quickly as does 
the disease caused by the stomach worm. The worm 
causing these tumors is called oesophagostoma columbi- 
anum. 

Nodular disease is difficult to cure, if indeed it is pos- 
sible to cure it at all after it is established. Prevention 
is about all that one can do. Dr. W. H. Dalrymple of 
the Louisiana station has shown, however, that it is read- 
ily communicable from affected ewes to their lambs 
through the medium of the pasture. He has also demon- 
strated that where diseased ewes are kept confined to the 
barn and their lambs allowed to run on clean pasture 
not contaminated by the presence of any old sheep, the 



348 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

lambs remain healthy and thus a new healthy stock can 
be had even from a diseased flock. None of these dis- 
eases originates spontaneously. There are no other 
known hosts of these diseases than sheep, goats and per- 
haps deer, so it is merely a question of starting with the 
lambs, born free of all parasites, and keeping them in 
health by putting them on fresh and uninfected pasture. 
This insures freedom from these devitalizing pests. 

Feeding Sheep and Lambs on Pasture. — ^There is often 
good profit in feeding western lambs or natives on grass 
in the spring, summer or fall. At this art some men 
succeed admirably; others fail lamentably. The keynote 
of success is to put the troughs in a small yard which 
may be moved from time to time as the land gets foul. 
When grain is put in the troughs the sheep must be ex- 
cluded; afterward all must be brought in. It will not 
do to depend on their intelligence or memory; pigs can 
be called to feed and will all come, but this is not so as 
to sheep or lambs, as a rule. The shepherd must see 
that every one comes to its feed and that none goes 
away until the feed is all consumed. Sheep are imitative 
animals and if one leaves its feed others may follow, let- 
ting those that remain have a chance to overeat. 

Feeding Sucking Lambs on Pasture. — I have found 
great profit from feeding young lambs corn on the grass 
in April, May and June, as one would feed pigs. I would 
fence a place so that the ewes could not get in or else 
give the lambs access through creeps to a pasture from 
w^hich the ewes were excluded and feed them ear corn, 
simply throwing it down on clean grass and letting them 
shell it as pigs shell corn. This mingling of succulent 



ALFALFA AND SHEEP 349 

green grass, mothers' milk and good sound corn produces 
very rapid gains. 

Alfalfa Pasture for Sheep. — For many years it was 
common practice with us to turn ewes and lambs on 
alfalfa pasture. Great profit resulted from this prac- 
tice with some little loss. Commonly about 2 per cent 
to 4 per cent of the animals turned on alfalfa would 
die during the season, though there were years with 
less than i per cent of loss. We learned the following 
points : The alfalfa should always have grasses mixed 
through it. Timothy, brome grass, bluegrass and even 
oats or wheat drilled in will serve. When thus mixed it 
is not nearly so apt to cause bloat as when fed pure. 
The animals should be kept off until the alfalfa has 
reached a good growth, almost to the blooming stage. 
They should be filled with other feed before being turned 
on, and the best time for turning on is at about 10 
o'clock in the morning. After they are once filled with 
alfalfa they must not be taken off, not even for a half 
day, nor at night, nor when it rains. Their safety de- 
pends on their never again getting very hungry for al- 
falfa, but on their having it always before them and 
mixed with grasses that they may eat alternately. The 
meadow should never be fully stocked, but the mower 
should run over it twice during the season and the sur- 
plus alfalfa made into hay. It may be wise not to mow 
it all off at one time. The practical disadvantage that 
we found was that the ewes thus treated would quite 
often become barren, probably from over-fatness, but 
the lambs throve wonderfully and remained quite free 
from internal parasites. 



350 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

Feeding Colts on Pashire. — In Kentucky, in the best 
of bluegrass pastures, men growing Thoroughbred colts 
commonly feed them oats while suckling their dams. 
This is accomplished by putting railed enclosures about 
large troughs; the rails are low enough to exclude the 
mares and high enough to allow the foals to go to their 
feed. Thus pushed the colts grow splendidly and reach 
probably the maximurn development of which they are 
capable. In France I have observed that very often 
draft colts are given the best of pastures and liberal 
feeding of oats or oats and bran besides. This is good 
for the colts and good for the pastures as well. 

Pasturing Cattle. — It is wise to keep cattle off grass 
until it has become sweet and good. This is best for 
the pasture and best for the cattle. When at last they go 
to grass much can be done to aid them in making good 
gains. One of the easiest and most useful of practices 
is to place large portable racks in the pasture and place 
in them green forage, alfalfa, clover, or whatever may 
be most convenient. The cattle will consume a great 
deal of this without neglecting their grazing. Cattle 
are too indolent to fill by grazing as full as they should 
be, this especially in warm climates. By means of this 
half-soiling system the pasture is rapidly enriched and 
made to support many more animals than it otherwise 
would. Cattle will also eat a great deal of dry hay 
or even bright wheatstraw or oatstraw when on clover 
pasture, and stacks may be thus devoured with much 
profit right in the pastures. There is great profit in 
feeding green corn, stalks, blades and ears, to cattle in 
the fall. Throw^ it on grass or feed it in racks. If fed 



SALTING STOCK ON GRASS 351 

judiciously on good pasture the gains are probably more 
rapid than under any other system. When cold weather 
comes on if the cattle have been well chosen they are 
ready to go to market. There is profit to animals and 
to grass in feeding linseed or cottonseed meal or cake on 
grass. The manure from meal or cake fed animals is 
richer than when they are fed corn and the grass re- 
sponds well. It is more profitable commonly to feed corn 
with the meals. 

Giving Salt on Pasture. — Ordinarily it is unwise to 
limit animals in their consumption of salt. After they 
have become accustomed to salt by having been ''salted" 
for several days in succession one may as well fill a 
strong box in some place where rain will not leach it 
away with coarse cheap salt, one sort being about as 
good as another. When barrel salt is cheapest one may 
as well roll a barrel into one's shed and cutting a liberal 
good-sized hole in its side allow the animals to go to it 
at will. If there is danger of bloating from too much 
succulent alfalfa or red clover in pasture, slaked lime add- 
ed to the salt is said to lessen the trouble. Pure bone- 
meal (it is made especially for feeding animals) should 
be mixed with salt wherever there is lime-deficiency in 
the soil. Put in several pounds of bonemeal to one pound 
of salt. 

Making Export Steers on Grass. — There are parts of 
the Virginias and some other states devoted largely to 
making steers for English markets to which they are 
sent alive. It requires for making export steers good 
grass, good water and suitable climate. It is notable 
that mountain pastures though somewhat less luxuriant 



352 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

make more fat than do lush pastures in the cornbelt. 
Once the cattle making export steers were all raised 
from Short-horn cows kept in the neighborhood or in 
nearby counties. Now they are many of them brought 
from western ranches, especially from the Panhandle 
region in Texas. The cattle go to grass when yearlings 
and are fed during their first winter on cornstalks with 
a few small ears of corn. Some graziers feed consider- 
able corn as grass starts green in spring, though it is not 
a common practice since not much corn is grown in that 
region. During the season they are given as good pas- 
turage as possible, care being taken not to crowd or over- 
stock them. They are fat in September, October and No- 
vember and are sent direct to the seaports and thence 
to England. The cattle are not when sold as fat as 
cornfed cattle, but are such as command good prices 
o-n the markets of Great Britain. After the export steers 
have gone to market there is often left much grass that 
is taken by youngsters following them. There is often 
very good profit in making export steers. Sometimes 
more than $io per acre is received for the grass that 
they have eaten. Only the bluegrasses have been found 
suitable for making export steers. 

LETTERS FROM EXPERIMENT STATIONS. 

Before writing this book I addressed letters to the 
directors of all experiment stations in America, and to 
those of several foreign lands, asking for information as 
to what grasses, clovers and other plants were in suc- 
cessful use in their respective states, and asking them to 
mention the few that seemed in highest regard. The 



GRASSES IN ALABAMA 000 

following replies seem to have so much interest and 
merit that they weH deserve space herein, and I only 
regret that it has been found necessary in some instances 
to abbreviate them. 

Alabama. — Prof. J. F. Duggar, Director of the Alabama Experi- 
ment Station of Auburn : 

Bermuda Grass. — This is more generally used than any other 
grass as summer pasturage throughout the cottonbelt. On the 
whole it is the most valauble pasturage plant of the South. It can 
be propagated with greatest certainty by the use of rootstocks 
dropped in checks 2x3 feet and at any time from February to 
June. It can also be propagated by seed, but the germination of the 
seed is sometimes poor and there is also danger of the stand being 
poor by reason of rain and baking sun soon after the date of plant- 
ing. There may well be combined with Bermuda, lespedeza for sum- 
mer pasturage, and bur clover for winter pasturage. 

Carpet Grass. — Carpet grass is probabl}^ next to Bermuda in 
value as a summer pasturage grass for the region to which it is 
adapted, namely, the southern half of the cottonbelt. It is most 
useful on low or damp sandy areas and is especially resistent to 
an acid or water-logged condition of the soil. It is of slight 
value on the dry hills. It is superior to Bermuda on the low- 
lands, to which it is adapted, its superiority consisting in remain- 
ing green later in the fall or winter and the greater ease with 
which, when desired, it can be eradicated. Propagation is most 
certain by means of portions of the old plants. This plant seeds 
poorly but is sometimes spread by cutting the seed stems for hay 
and spreading this over the land to be seeded. 

Orchard Grass. — This is of limited suitability and is only avail- 
able for soils naturall}^ fertile and well-drained or else soils that 
have been improved by rotation of crops and good farming. It is 
of more value in the Northern than in the Southern half of the 
cottonbelt, but even in that region it is not of universal adapta- 
bility. Its chief value of course is for pasturage, for which pur- 
pose it may well be combined with lespedeza or with other 
clovers and grasses. 

Red Top Grass. — This is suited to the moist lowlands through- 
out the greater part of the cottonbelt when the purpose is pas- 



354 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

turage. The best time for sowing is the latter part of September 
or early part of October. It is not unfavorably affected by acidity 
of the soil. 

Cowpeas. — The cowpea must be ranked as the legume of first 
importance in the South. Its chief value is as a hay plant and a 
soil-improving crop. It is also valuable for the production of 
seed and for pasturage. The pasturage season is very short and 
as a rule the crop is used for pasturage only incidentally, for 
example, when live stock is turned into a cornfield where cow- 
peas have grown as a catch-crop between the corn rows. 

Lespedeza. — This is adapted to almost every grade of soil and 
to the entire range of climate throughout the cottonbelt. It is 
useful almost exclusively for pasturage, although on very rich 
land in seasons of abundant rainfall it grows tall enough to be 
mowed, when it makes a grade of hay equal to alfalfa. This is 
an annual, which, however, reseeds freely, even when closely 
grazed. When first introduced into a field the seed should be sown 
on prepared land in February or March, either among the grow-, 
ing oats or alone, using about one bushel per acre of the seed 
still in the hull. Lespedeza should form a part of practically all 
pasture mixtures for the South. 

Bur Clover. — This is a winter-growing annual legume which 
reseeds itself, provided it be lightly grazed, or not grazed at 
all, during the period of seed formation in April and May. The 
seed of the southern variety is obtainable only in the bur; that is, 
uncleaned. In this condition it requires no inoculation on any 
soil, but requires very early sowing, preferably in August, so 
as to give time for the rotting of the burs. Seed of the California 
variety may be obtained either in the bur or in the threshed con- 
dition, both kinds of California clover seed apparently requiring 
inoculation on most southern soils. Here again the burs need to be 
sown early, but the threshed seed may be GOwn a month later, or 
in 5^Ptember. Inoculating soil for bur clover is obtained from 
an old field of bur clover or of alfalfa. 

Hairy Vetch. — This annual winter-growing legume is useful either 
for hay or pasturage, and also for soil-improvement It is best 
grown in combination with either oats or wheat, the mixture be- 
ing cut for hay. The seed may be sown throughout September 
and October in most parts of the cottonbelt and the hay cut in 
May. Sow about one-half bushel of vetch seed with the usual 



GRASSES IN ARKANSAS 355 

amount of oats or wheat. On most soils in the South vetch needs 
to be inoculated. For this purpose one may use soil from a 
spot in the garden where English peas have grown or from a 
field of any kind of vetch. 

Crimson Clover. — Crimson clover is a winter-growing annual, the 
seed of which at the rate of 15 to 20 pounds per acre should be 
sown in September and thoroughly inoculated with soil from a 
field where either crimson, red, white or Carolina clover has 
grown and produced abundant tubercles the year before. The 
seed may be sown broadcast among the growing cotton plants 
and lightly covered, or, when hay-making is the end in view, the 
seed may be sown on well-prepared land. This plant should be 
cut early for hay to avoid the danger sometimes reported from 
the use of over-ripe hay. This danger consists in the formation 
of balls in the stomach of horses from the matted hair that de- 
velops around the ripening seed. The pasture season of crimson 
clover is comparatively short. Its greatest value is for soil-im- 
provement. 

Soybeans. — This plant is rapidly growing into importance in 
the South, but has not yet played a prominent part in southern 
agriculture. Probably the best use is as a crop to be hogged off 
while the pods are forming and after seed formation is com- 
pleted. It also makes a nutritious, though rather coarse hay. The 
plant is of about as great value as the cowpea for soil-improve- 
ment, though apparently requiring somewhat better land. It is 
adapted to a wide range of soils and of climate. The foregoing 
are arranged in order of importance as I conceive their rank. 

Arkansas. — Prof. ]\Iartin Nelson, Agronomist of the Arkansas 
Experiment Station, Fayetteville, Ark. : In naming the grasses that 
are most suited to Arkansas, I may say, first, as our best yielder 
for hay purposes and for pasture as well, I will name Johnson 
grass. I am aware that people of the South are afraid of this 
grass, but not all, fortunately, are timid. Johnson grass belongs 
to the Sorghum family. It spreads and perpetuates itself not only 
by seed but by a jointed rootstalk. This grass puts forth a vig- 
orous growth, stands drouth well and can be cut for hay several 
times during the season. The yield is heavy. The same charac- 
teristics that make it suitable for meadow make it suitable for pas- 
ture also. The other grass especially adapted to this state is Ber- 



356 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

muda grass. It grows thickly and makes a very excellent turf, 
tends to bind loose soil with a close turf as well as the heavier 
soils. It is the favorite grass for lawns and parks. It also per- 
petuates itself by seeding and by the underground system of root- 
stalk. Its character of growth above the ground is that of many 
fine stems and it does not as a rule grow very high, seldom reach- 
ing more than 18" or 20" even on the best of land. It does not 
start growing early nor grow very late because it is a hot-weather 
grass. To sow for pasture or meadow purposes, but particularly 
for pasture, it is necessary to seed other grasses or clovers with 
it in combination. We have no other grass that will stand as 
much drouth as the Bermuda. It is dreaded by many of our farm- 
ers. Foundation for this fear is largely imaginary. We must ad- 
mit, however, that it cannot be eradicated by wishing it to be gone. 
Other grasses that are pretty well adapted to this state I will name 
in this order : Orchard grass, tall meadow oatgrass, meadow fescue 
and redtop and timothy. Clovers have not been given much of a 
trial in this state. The clover, however, that has demonstrated that 
it is a good one here is Japanese clover, which comes on of its 
own accord, both on lowland and upland. Being a small clover it 
is to be recommended for pasture rather than for meadow, but in 
the bottom lands it makes very excellent hay in combination with 
other natural grasses. Another clover, commonly termed yellow 
clover (Medicago lupulina), is also coming in of its own accord 
and demonstrating that it is adapted to our conditions. White 
clover is also spreading of its own accord over the entire state. I 
look on these three clovers as the most promising and would recom- 
mend that white clover and Japanese clover be sown in combin- 
ation with Bermuda grass for permanent pasture and with John- 
son grass also. The white clover will produce earlier pasture and 
late pasture while the Japanese and Bermuda will hold out during 
the hot weather season. Crimson and burr clovers thrive under 
ideal conditions and seem to be well adapted to our climatic con- 
ditions, though they are both annuals, and for that reason do not 
persist as we should like to have them do, nor are they first-class 
hay plants. Alsike and red clover grow with fair success, but as 
yet we are in the experimental stage with most of the clovers, 
and find that while they give first-class results in one locality they 
may fail elsewhere. While alsike or red clover will thrive on the 
poorest soil, alsike is especially adapted to fairly fertile, low-lying 



GRASSES IN DELAWARE 357 

soil that is not too wet. Red clover thrives best on the richer soil, 
although occasionally is found doing excellently on wetter soil. 

Delaware. — Part of Bulletin 81 : The object of an investigation 
was to determine what combinations and quantities of commercial 
fertilizers could be most profitably applied to meadow lands. The 
experiment was planned by Director Harry Hayward. In the spring 
of 1907 a field which had been in wheat during 1906 and sown to 
grass, was divided into 18 one-acre plats. The stand of timothy 
was not heavy, but uniform, since it had been sown with a wheat 
drill. The fertilizers were applied with a distributor from April 
26 to May 2. The season was favorable, and the grass made a 
good growth. Harvesting began July 5. Each plat was cut and 
weighed separately. The following table shows the treatments, the 
increase due to treatment, cost of fertilizers, and the profit or loss 
from each plat. Plats 4 and 12 remained as checks — nothing was 
applied. It will be noted from the table that Plats 1, 2 and 3 re- 
ceived the same treatment, except in the amount of sodium nitrate 
applied. That is, Plat 2 received twice the quantity of Plat 1, and 
Plat 3 twice the quantity of Plat 2. The applications of sodium 
nitrate were thus in the ratio of 1, 2 and 4, while the gain from 
the treatments is in the ratio of about 1, 2 and 3. The heavier appli- 
cations — 320 pounds of nitrate — did not produce a proportional in- 
crease. From these comparisons we are led to the belief that a 
considerable quantity of nitrogen may be applied with profit. On 
Plats 2 and 3 the net profit due to treatment was $8.52 and $12.63 
respectivel}^ or more than 100 per cent. On Plats 5, 6, 7 and 8 
the treatments are the same in kind and quantity, except that the 
quantity of acid phosphate is double on each successive plat. In 
other words, acid phosphate was applied in the ratio of 1, 2, 4 and 
8. The yields of these plats do not show a corresponding ratio. 
The fact is, Plat 5, which had 80 pounds of acid phosphate, pro- 
duced more hay than Plat 7, which had 320 pounds, or even Plat 
8, which carried 640 pounds. From this it appears that the quantity 
of acid phosphate applied had but little efifect on the yield. A 
profit was made on each of the plats except number 8, where the 
treatment cost $1.68 more than the increased yield was worth. 
Similarly, the quantity of potash seems to have had but little efifect 
towards increasing the yield. Comparing Plats 10 and 11 as to 
treatment, the only difiference is in the quantity of potash applied, 
which is four times as much on one plat as the other. Yet the 



358 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

yields of the two plats show the opposite relation, the one with the 
lighter treatment producing the heavier yield. A comparison of 
the yields on Plats 3 and 9 shows that the lack of potash in the 
treatment has not seriously affected the yield. Plat 3 with 80 potmds 
of potash gave an increase of 4,890 pounds, while Plat 9 without 
potash gave 4,170 pounds. Plat 9, however, received but 240 
pounds nitrate, which probably accounts for its somewhat lower 
3aeld. While no test was made with sodium nitrate alone, or either 
acid phosphate or potash singly, yet from the foregoing it seems 
quite likely that nitrogen is the only element which can be applied 
in quantity with profit on this particular soil. Details are given in 
the table on the opposite page. 

Florida. — Prof. John M. Scott, Assistant Director of the Florida 
Experiment Station, Gainesville : In Florida we may if we wish 
have an abundance of forage crops. Many different legumes and 
grasses can be grown for hay, for pasture, or for soiling. How- 
ever, out of the numerous varieties, only a certain number are of 
especial value for pasturing live stock. 

GRASSES. 

Wiregrass. — In the pine forests, the native wiregrass grows to 
the exclusion of other kinds. After the pine trees have been re- 
moved by the lumbermen it is only a question of a few years until 
most of the wiregrass disappears, to be replaced by more nutritious 
grasses, such as the paspalums. 

Para-grass. — This may be called a dual-purpose grass, as it either 
furnishes good pasture for nine to 10 months in the year or it 
may be pastured only in the winter from February to May. If the 
para-grass sod be plowed during the latter part of May, a better 
hay crop will be secured. If used solely for pasturage it will per- 
haps be found advisable to plow only in December or January. 
The plowing of the sod gives the grass new life and vigor for the 
coming year's growth, and also protects it from frosts. In some 
respects para-grass resembles Bermuda grass, especially in its habit 
of growth. When growth begins in the spring, runners 10' to 30' 
in length are sent out in all directions, rooting from the nodes. 
When the ground is fairly covered with runners, upright shoots 
are sent up from each node, from 12" to 3' or 4' in height. The 
yield of hay per acre is from 1 to 4 tons. 



EFFECT OF TOP-DRESSING 



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6,240 
4,980 
2,160 
3,560 
4,190 
2,960 
3,560 
2,050 
3,130 


0.0. 

to ' 


1,400 
2,030 

800 
1,400 
-110 

970 


2,390 
1,780 
2,190 
1,480 
4,170 
4,080 
2,820 


1,520 
3,200 
4,890 


Gain due to 

treatment, 

pounds. 


7.00 
10.15 

4.00 

7.00 
—.55 

4.85 


11.95 
8.90 
10.45 
7.40 
20.35 
20.40 
14.10 


$7.60 
16.00 
24.45 


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360 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

Japanese sugar-cane. — This is of course really a large grass, and 
for heavy yield of green forage containing large amounts of carbo- 
hydrates there is perhaps no crop that surpasses it. A yield of 
25 to 30 tons per acre is not unusual. This is perhaps three times 
the yield that one is able to secure from either corn or sorghum. 
Japanese sugar-cane is a perennial. It does not produce its maxi- 
mum yield until about the third or fourth year after planting. One 
planting, with proper attention, will give satisfactory yields for 20 
years or more. This in itself gives a considerable advantage over 
annual forage crops. Japanese sugar-cane may be used as pasture, 
as soiling crop, for silage or as dry forage (hay). It will give 
the best result as pasture from about Nov. 15 to Feb. 15. However, 
it will not stand pasturing in the spring after the young growth 
has started. For soiling it will give better results if not cut until 
the crop is fairly well matured. However, it can be fed at any 
time between July and January. The largest quantity of silage or 
dry forage will be obtained by harvesting during November or 
early in December. These dates refer to north-central Florida. 
When used as a dry forage the best results will be obtained if the 
forage be run through a feed-cutter just before feeding. Pre- 
pared and fed in this way there will be a minimum of refuse and 
waste. When properly handled, hay made from Japanese sugar- 
cane may be kept for six months, and still be relished by horses, 
cattle and hogs. 

Bermuda Grass. — This is a good summer pasture, is relished by 
all kinds of stock and is nutritious. From its method of growth 
Bermuda grass does not make a desirable hay crop except on good 
rich soil or where it is heavily fertilized. Bermuda will be found 
to be a satisfactory pasture grass on all classes of soil. However, 
the sod should receive a liberal amount of fertilizer. Two or three 
light applications of fertilizer during the year will produce better 
results than one heavy application. It will be found advisable to go 
over Bermuda grass with either a disk or spike-tooth harrow each 
time the fertilizer is applied. This harrowing seems to put new 
life into the grass, and results in an increased growth of nutritious 
blades, 

LEGUMES. 

Velvet beans. — Perhaps the velvet bean is the best legume for 
Florida. It affords without doubt the best winter pasture that can 



LEGUMES IN FLORIDA 



361 




362 



MEADOWS. AND PASTURES 







FORAGE CROPS IN FLORIDA 



363 




364 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

be grown here. Though the velvet bean does not furnish a green 
pasture at any season of the year, yet it supplies good foraging from 
December or January until grass comes in the spring. It is usually 
estimated that one acre to one acre and a half of velvet beans will 
be enough to fatten one animal. The cost"* of growing this crop 
will be from $5 to $7 per acre. The yield per acre varies accord- 
ing to conditions, but 1 ton to V/2 tons of beans is not too much 
to expect. 

Bur clo-Ver. — This furnishes good grazing during the winter 
months. If one may chance to have a good Bermuda pasture for 
summer grazing it will be found advisable to sow bur clover on 
the Bermuda sod (say during October), and disk in the seed. By 
the middle of December this will have made a good growth and 
will give good pasturage until April. If not pastured too close, 
bur clover will reseed itself from year to year, and in this way 
will make a permanent pasture. 

SOME HAY CROPS OF FLORIDA. 

Crabgrass. — This is perhaps the most common hay grass in 
Florida. It is an annual found abundantly in most cultivated fields. 
By some it is considered a noxious weed ; but if it were not for 
crabgrass, there would be but little home-grown hay put on the 
market. Crabgrass requires next to no attention. If the grow- 
ing crop be given proper attention in the way of cultivation but 
little difficulty will be experienced in keeping crabgrass under con- 
trol. After early crops (such as oats, melons, early corn, cabbage 
and cucumbers) are harvested it comes up voluntarily, and, as a 
rule, enough fertilizer will have been left by the previous crop to 
give the crabgrass a good start and produce a good crop of hay. 
The yield of hay will be from ^ ton to 2 tons per acre, depending 
on conditions. 

Beggarweed. — Beggarweed, sometimes called Florida clover. Is a 
valuable hay crop; but it is not grown so extensively as it should 
be. It is seldom seen In the fields during the time that the crops 
are being cultivated; but like crabgrass it springs up quickly when 
cultivation ceases. To make the best quality of hay, beggarweed 
should be cut before the stems become hard and woody. After 
such crops as oats, melons, cabbage and cucumbers two good crops 



GROWING FORAGE IN FLORIDA 



365 




366 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

of beggarweed hay can be secured. If the first crop be cut as early 
as the first week in August there will be time enotigh for a second 
cutting. 

Natal grass (Tricholaena rosea). — This is an annual grass, a 
native of South Africa, and is now grown to some extent in a 
number of other tropical and sub-tropical countries. Its appear- 
ance before flowering somewhat resembles timothy. When in bloom, 
however, it is very unlike timothy, and has a purple flower. It has 
a straight upright stem with many side leaves. It grows from 2' 
to 5' high. When natal grass first germinates and comes up it is 
almost impossible to distinguish it from crabgrass ; but after it has 
reached a height of 4" or 5" it is readily distinguished. It is easy 
to eradicate natal grass by cultivation. For this reason it is seldom 
seen as a weed in tilled fields, while the growing crop is being culti- 
vated. But when cultivation ceases natal grass seed may come up 
and make a good growth, after such crops as Irish potatoes, melons, 
oats and other early crops have been harvested. In feeding value 
natal grass hay is somewhat richer than timothy hay. The analysis, 
as given in the Florida state chemist's report for 1907 is as follows : 

Per cent. 

Moisture 9.75 

Fiber 36.75 

Ash 5.02 

Protein 7.45 

Nitrogen-free extract 39.23 

Ether extract 1 .80 

The yield of hay from this crop is satisfactory, being from ^ 
to 4 tons per acre for the season. Two good hay crops can gen- 
erally be obtained during the year, and under very favorable con- 
ditions 3 may be had. 

Georgia. — Director Martin V. Calvin of the Georgia Experiment 
Station, Experiment, Ga. : I regret I can not find among the bulle- 
tins of this station any that touch the subject of meadows and 
pastures. It is a very interesting and important subject, but, as 
you know, our people — very many of them ex necesitate rei — have 
been giving so much attention to cotton production that they have 
lost sight of live stock. Out of office hours, I am, and have been, 
trying to get a good word to the people through the secular press 
in the interest of more and better stock, and improved, labor-saving. 



GRASSES IN ILLINOIS 367 

farm implements. With more live stock will come the demand for 
pastures and meadows. 

Illinois. — Prof. O. D. Center of the Illinois College of Agricul- 
ture, Urbana, 111. : While the list of available grasses is long, 
there are a few that are alwa3's serviceable, and are of greatest 
value. These in the order of their importance for pasture grasses 
in Illinois are: Kentucky bluegrass (Poa pratense), redtop (Agros- 
tis vulgaris), timothy (PJileitin pratense), orchard grass (Dactylis 
glomerata) , perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne) and meadow fox- 
tail {Alopeciirus pratensis). This list includes only the true 
grasses that are of unciuestioned value. It is also common to in- 
clude in this list the clovers, medium red, alsike, and white, as 
well as alfalfa, which last mentioned certainly comes more trul}- 
under . the head of meadow plants than those for pasture. We 
have such a diversity of soil types in Illinois that no one mixture 
will do for all locations. Classifying the soils as good land well 
drained, land of ordinary fertilit.v poorly drained and poor soils, 
dry, gravelly and broken, we present the following mixtures for 
permanent pasture : 

Good land well drained, 

4 pounds Kentucky bluegrass ^Poa pratense 

2 pounds Redtop := Agrostis vulgaris 

2 pounds Orchard grass = Dactylis glomerata 

3 pounds Timoth}^ = Phleum pratense 

1 pound Meadow foxtail =Alopercurus pratensis 

1 pound Perennial ryegrass ^Lolium perenne. 

2 pounds Alsike or white clover 

or a mixture of both. 

This variety of grasses and the amounts of each give a total 
of 15 pounds of seed per acre which will, taking the number of 
seeds per pound of the different sorts and the average per cent 
of viability into consideration, supply nearly 21,000,000 fertile seed 
per acre ; this means that there are at least 450 seeds per square 
foot of surface. While we realize that it is often advised to sow 
twice as much seed per acre as here suggested, we contend that 
this seeding is sufficiently thick if sown on a properly prepared 



368 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

seedbed. For permanent pasture on poorly drained land the follow- 
ing mixture is recommended : 

5 pounds Kentucky Bluegrass =Poe pratense 

2 pounds Redtop =Agrostis vulgaris 

1 pound Orchard grass =Dactylis glomerata 

3 pounds Timothy =Phleiim pratense 
V/i pounds Meadow fescue =(Festuca pratensis) 
2^ pounds Alsike clover =Trifolium hybridum 

Here again we have 15 pounds per acre of a seed mixture fur- 
nishing over 22,000,000 seeds — certainly a sufficiently heavy seeding 
for all practical purposes. For permanent pasture on poor soil, 
dry, gravelly, or broken, we suggest the following: 

3 pounds Redtop =Agrostis vulgaris 

2 pounds Orchard grass z=:DactyHs glomerata 

4 pounds Sheeps fescue ^Festuca ovina 

3 pounds Timothy =Phleum pratense 

4 pounds Italian rye grass =Lolium Italicum 
2 pounds White clover =Trifolium repens 

It will be noticed that this mixture contains a greater number of 
pounds to be sown per acre than either of the preceding. The 
number of viable seeds per acre, taking a good average per cent of 
germination for each sort, will be practically 23,000,000 or 530 
per square foot of surface. 

Meadows and Hay Land.. — For meadows there are fewer sorts 
of grass used than for pastures. The old but incorrect idea that 
timothy is the best and most valuable grass for hay is still pre- 
valent in too many sections of Illinois. Throughout the cornbelt, 
however, the clovers and alfalfa are more in evidence. On the 
poorer soils of the state, redtop is the staple grass for hay. It has 
been aptly put by one of the most successful and progressive far- 
mers of this state that the common practice of soil depletion of 
Illinois progresses along the following lines: "Corn until the land 
refuses to produce profitable crops ; then corn and oats, or corn and 
wheat, until the same limit is reached. After this condition pre- 
vails, clover is brought into use and another period of profitable 
cropping ensues until the soil refuses to respond readily, when 
timothy is substituted, and a series of years of timothy hay pro- 
duction follows. Presently, however, the timothy fails to yield a 



GRASSES IN ILLINOIS 369 

profitable crop, and redtop is hailed as the savior of the land, and 
as the money-producer. This thought is soon dispelled, however, 
for redtop quickly ceases to pay for the labor of cutting and 
stacking, and the only recourse left for the thoughtless and care- 
less farmer (?) is the poor house." This expresses the exact con- 
dition of the hay meadow situation throughout too large a proportion 
of Illinois. The well-cared-for meadows of the state consist for 
the most part of either pure timoth}', clover and timothy mixture, 
clover and orchard mixture, or some one of the clovers alone. 
There is a very small number of farms in Illinois that even at- 
tempt to have permanent meadows. The extreme length of life 
of a hay field, if it is at all available for cultivated crops, is 
from 4 to 6 years. Where a field cannot be cultivated there is a 
decided tendency toward seeding it to alfalfa and making the 
most permanent hay land possible. True there are hundreds of 
acres of land in the southern part of Illinois which produce a ton 
or less of poor, weedy, redtop hay per acre, but these fields might 
better be classed as abandoned rather than as meadow lands. 

Core of Pastures and Meadozvs. — Special attention to a pasture 
or to a meadow is one of the clearest indications of good farming. 
Where cultivation and fertilization of the grasslands of a farm are 
practiced, the grain crops and the live stock of the farm show 
careful attention and good breeding. The use of the disk harrow 
in the spring followed by a smoothing harrow has proved of 
especial value in keeping a pasture free from weeds and promoting 
the growth of grass. The same is true of meadows. When this 
cultivation is accompanied by the addition of plant food, such 
food as the soil indicates by response it is in need of, the growth 
and yield secured far outweigh the cost of labor and plant food 
applied. Carefully conducted experiments have proved that with a 
clover meadow the yield may be increased more than a ton per 
acre through cultivation and the application of phosphorus. 
(Steamed bone or raw rock phosphate). This is especially true 
on the land of the cornbelt of Illinois. While the effect is less 
marked with the timoth}^ meadow, it is still sufficiently large to 
warrant the expenditure of labor and money for the application. 
Pastures respond markedly to like treatment, and not only give 
grazing facilities for a larger number of animals, but show the 
benefits of the cultivation and addition of plant food, when broken 
and put into crops. 



370 



MEADOWS AND PASTURES 



Following is a method of determining amounts of various sorts 
of seed to include in a mixture : 



Name. 



Seeds per 
pound. 



Per cent of 
germination. 



Viable seed. 



Kentucky bluegrass . . . 

Redtop 

Orchard grass 

Timothy 

Meadow foxtail 

Perennial ryegrass 

White or alsike clover. 
Total 



Kentucky bluegrass. 

Redtop 

Orchard grass 

Timothy 

Meadow fescue 

Alsike clover 

Total 



Redtop 

Orchard grass. . . 
Sheeps fescue... 

Timothy 

Italian ryegrass. 

White clover 

Total 



2,400,000 
6,000,000 
600,000 
1,170.000 
900,000 
340,000 
700,000 



2,400,000 

6,000,000 

600,000 

1,170,000 

400,000 

700,000 



6,000,000 
600,000 
700,000 

1,170,000 
300,000 
700,000 



60 
80 
70 
90 
50 
90 
80 



60 
80 
70 
90 
80 
80 



80 
70 
70 
90 
90 
80 



5,750,000 

9,650,000 
800,000 

3,150,000 
180,000 
300.000 

1,120.000 



20,900,000 



7.200,000 
9.600,000 

400,000 
3,100,000 

480,000 
1,400,000 



22,180,000 



14,500,000 
800,000 
1,900,000 
3,150,000 
1,080,000 
1,320.000 



22.750,000 



Indiana. — Prof. A. T. Wiancko, Agriculturist at Purdue Univer- 
sity Experiment Station, Lafayette, Ind. : There is no doubt that tim- 
othy is our best meadow grass in this part of the country. Orchard 
grass has been considerably tried and advocated but in practice it 
does not seem to meet with much favor among farmers. I judge that 
this is on account of its form of growth, and its rather coarse stems. 
Meadow fescue and redtop have a place but they are comparatively 
unimportant beside timothy. Such grasses as Bromus inermis. 



GRASSES IN KANSAS 371 

ryegrass and the oat-grasses are valuable under certain conditions, 
but they have found no important place in this part of the country. 
I believe, however, that there is a good field for investigation along 
this line and that the number of grasses that may be profitably 
used for meadows will be increased. Concerning clovers, it is our 
observation that for general purposes on an ordinary farm where 
ordinary rotations are followed there is nothing that can quite 
take the place of common red clover. There is very little else. 
used in this state. Where soil improvement is the prime object 
in clover production I believe the mammoth clover has an impor- 
tant place, and some of our farmers are using it for that purpose 
with very satisfactory results ; but where clover may be used for 
either hay or seed production, or both, the common red has the 
preference. I am of the opinion that alsike clover should be used 
to a greater extent for sowing in meadows with timothy, as it 
works in well with timothy and adds very materially to the quality 
of the hay produced. Alsike is grown for seed to some extent 
here, but a strong objection to it is that it is weak-stemmed and 
lies too close to the ground when sown alone. With a mixture of 
timothy this objection does not hold. Under favorable conditions in 
southern Indiana it is practically a perennial and in well-cared-for 
meadows should last a long time. Alfalfa is becoming quite popular 
.here and will soon be one of the leading legumes grown for hay 
and pasture purposes. For permanent pastures there is nothing 
quite equal to Kentucky bluegrass, but in many cases it seems wise 
to mix some other grasses and clovers with it, especially in cases 
where the bluegrass does not grow luxuriantly at certain times of 
the year. In this way several of the grasses and clovers may find 
a place in permanent pastures. For temporary pastures, red clover 
with a little timothy in it is most popular. There are a number of 
annual crops that may be profitably used for pasture, especially for 
hogs. Among these are the cowpea and soybean. Our observations 
indicate that alfalfa will be more and more used for pasture pur- 
poses as people become better acquainted with it and learn how 
properly to treat it. 

Kansas. — Prof. A. M. Ten E5^ck, of the Agronomy Department 
of the Kansas State Agricultural College, Manhattan : There are 
no domestic grasses adapted for growing in central and western 
Kansas which will make good permanent pasture or meadow. 



372 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

Kentucky bluegrass and white clover have been gradually introduced, 
and are becoming well established in the eastern and northeastern 
portions of the state ; and, in fact, Kentucky bluegrass is about the 
only variety of domestic grass which is well suited for permanent 
pasture, and it must be associated with white clover in order that it 
may continue to thrive and make productive pasture continually for a 
number of years. Perhaps meadow fescue, commonly known in 
Kansas as English bluegrass, comes as near being a permanent 
meadow grass as any variety of domestic grass grown in this state ; 
yet as a rule it is much more profitable to seed new fields every 
four to six years, and break up the old meadows, planting the land 
to corn or other crops for a few years before re-seeding to grass. 
As a rule, I do not advocate keeping the same land continuously 
in any kind of grass, either for meadow or pasture, provided the 
land can be used for other crops, and new seeding of grass can be 
secured without too much expense or difficulty. 

Covering land with grass is nature's way of restoring to old 
worn-out soils the fertility and good tilth characteristic of good 
soils. The true grasses do not add nitrogen to the soil, as do 
clover and alfalfa, yet they are in a sense nitrogen-gatherers in that 
the nitrogen of the soil is collected and stored up in the soil in the 
form of humus. Thus grasses prevent the wasting of nitrogen and 
other plant food elements and serve to protect the soil and maintain 
its fertility. By their extensive and deep penetrating root systems, 
many grasses also tend to break up and deepen the soil, gathering 
and storing plant food in their roots, and thus actually increasing 
the humus and available plant food of the soil. The perfect tilth 
and freedom from clods so characteristic of virgin soils, is always 
more or less completely restored whenever soil has been seeded 
down to grass for a sufficient length of time. Grasses and legumes 
maintain the supply of soil nitrogen and restore the proper soil 
texture ; besides they are profitable crops and, in fact, are absolutely 
necessary on every farm on which stock is kept. Pasture must 
be had on every farm, and it is quite essential that it be made a part 
of the regular crop rotation. Much more grass can be produced 
when pastures are kept fresh and new, and the increase of fertility 
and improvement of soil texture result in larger crops of corn 
and grain when the pasture is broken up and planted to these 
crops. 

There is still much native grassland in Kansas, and if permanent 



GRASSES IN KANSAS 373. 

pastures and meadows are desirable these lands had better be left 
in grass, since there are no grasses better adapted for permanent 
pasture or permanent meadow in Kansas than the native grasses 
which grow on Kansas prairies. As yet we have not been able to 
domesticate these wild grasses so that they can be re-seeded suc- 
cessfully. Several of the native grasses are being grown by our 
botanical department with the idea of domesticating them and select- 
ing improved varieties for propagation. The following are valuable 
and permanent wild Kansas grasses: Big bluestem (Andropogan 
furcatus), little bluestem {Andropogan scopariiis) , buffalo grass 
{Buchloe dactyloides) , gama grass {Tripsacum dactyloides), Indian 
grass {Chrysopogon nutans), switch grass (Panicum virgatum), 
Prairie oats (Boufeloua raccuiosa), prairie grass (Kocleria cristata 
and Katonii ohtiisata), and short gama (Boutcloiia hirsuta). 

As pastures and meadows get old they become sod-bound and less 
productive, and this is true of wild grasses as well as of domestic 
grasses. The available fertility of the soil finally becomes ex- 
hausted and much of it is locked up in the immense root system 
which is developed by a thick growth of grass. With domestic 
grasses a new growth may often be secured by thoroughly disking 
and harrowing the sod early in the spring, and this method has also 
been successfully practiced with the native grasses. The disking 
has the effect of destroying part of the grass plants, whose roots 
soon decay, furnishing new food for the growth of the grass. 
The disking also breaks up the compact condition caused by the 
tramping of stock, and areates the soil, wdiile the mulch of mellow 
earth acts to conserve the soil moisture, thus favoring the growth of 
the grass. 

In order to get the greatest results, however, fertilizers should 
be applied along with the disking. No better fertilizer can be 
applied to grass than barnyard manure. The top-dressing applied 
in the fall or early winter serves as a cover to protect the grass roots 
from the extremes of temperature. As spring opens the water 
from the melting snow and rains carries the nutrients from the 
manure down to the roots of the grass, causing an early strong 
growth, which continues throughout the season. During the sum- 
mer also, the manure acts as a mulch to keep the water in the soil, 
thus protecting the plants more or less from the influence of dry 
weather. There is no more convenient place to haul manure than 
on the grass land; there is rio crop which responds more readily 



374 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

and gives more profitable results from the application of manure 
than does grass; and it is not necessary to wait until the pasture or 
meadow is old and worn-out before making liberal applications 
of manure. It is my recommendation always to use grasses in 
rotation with other crops whenever possible. There are a number 
of grasses which are more or less well adapted for growing as 
rotation grasses in Kansas, and these may always be more or less 
permanent. Judging from the nature of the grasses and their 
general adaptation and the experience of farmers in growing them 
I have prepared the following list of grasses and combination of 
grasses and legumes as being suitable for meadow or pasture to 
the several divisions of the state : 

For meadows in Eastern Kansas : 

1. Timothy and Mammoth alsike or common red clover. 

2. Orchard grass and common red clover. 

3. Bromus inermis and common red clover. 

4. Meadow fescue and common red clover. 

5. Bromus inermis. orchard grass, and common red clover. 

6. Redtop, timothy and alsike clover. 

Central Kansas: 

Nos. 2. 3, and 5, as named above. 

7. Western ryegrass and Bromus inermis, with clover. 

Western Kansas : 

8. Bromus inermis, Western ryegrass and alfalfa. 

9. Bromus inermis and alfalfa. 

10. Bromus inermis. 

11. Tall oatgrass. 

For Pasture in Eastern Kansas : 

1. Meadow fescue, orchard grass, Bromus inermis and common 

red clover or alsike clover. 

2. Bromus inermis, timothy, redtop and alsike clover. 

(Especially on low lands.) 

3. Bromus inermis and alfalfa. 

4 Kentucky bluegrass and white clover. 



GRASS MIXTURES FOR KANSAS 375 

Central Kansas : 

5. Bromiis inermis, orchard grass, western ryegrass and common 

red clover or alfalfa. 

6. Bromus inermis and alfalfa. 

7. Bromus inermis. 

Western Kansas : 

8. Bromus inermis, western ryegrass and alfalfa. 

9. Bromus inermis. 

10. Bromus inermis and Tall oatgrass (Tall oatgrass is recom- 
mended for western climate and light soil. 

Combinations of grasses and perennial legumes are usually to 
be preferred to any single grass, both for meadow and for pasture. 
A combination of grasses is especially desirable for pasture, giving 
more continuous grazing, greater protection, more variety, and 
perhaps a better balanced food ration. In choosing grasses for 
pasture the object should be to choose such varieties that the defi- 
ciencies of one variety may be balanced by the good qualities of 
another. Grasses should be chosen which are different in their 
methods of growth and their dates of maturity, in order to lengthen 
the grazing period, and give the greatest amount and most con- 
tinuous grazing. On the other hand, for meadow, grasses and 
legumes should be chosen which have the same maturing season, 
in order to make the best quality of hay. A combination of grasses 
usually makes a more perfect sod than any one grass will produce 
and a more permanent pasture or meadow. A little clover or alfalfa 
should be seeded with every combination of grasses, whether for 
meadow or pasture. The legumes are enabled, by means of the 
bacteria which work on the roots of these plants, to utilize the free 
nitrogen of the air, and thus tend to increase the supply of nitrogen 
in the soil, and act as host-plants or feeders to the nitrogen-exhaust- 
ing grasses. It is very important therefore that every pasture or 
meadow should contain some perennial legumes, because the pres- 
ence of these nitrogen gathering plants will not only cause a greater 
production from the other grasses, but it will make the pasture or 
meadow more enduring, and leave the soil more fertile than would 
otherwise be the case when the sod is finally broken for the growing 
of other crops. Carr^dng out this principle it is a good plan to seed 
clover or alfalfa in the native pastures and meadows. I have 
observed this tried in a few instances, and clover especially often 



Z76 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

makes a good catch and is beneficial in helping to revive and renew 
the growth of the prairie grass. In establishing a grass meadow 
or pasture one of the most important factors is a proper seedbed. 
An ideal seedbed for grasses should not be deep and mellow, 
rather the soil should be mellow but finely pulverized only about 
as deep as the seed is sown ; while below the seed the soil should 
be firm but not too hard and compact, making a good connection 
with the deeper subsoil. This offers the most favorable conditions 
for the germination of the seed and the growth of the young grass 
plants. The firm soil belovv^ the seed allows the capillary moisture 
to be drawn up to the seed, while the mellow soil above the seed 
offers the most favorable condition for the warming of the soil and 
the oxygen of the air to reach the seed ; and these three factors, 
moisture, heat and ox3'gen, are essential for the germination of 
all seeds. Meanwhile, the mellow mulch of surface soil acts as 
a blanket to keep the moisture from escaping and at the same 
time gives the most favorable conditions for the delicate little 
plant to unfold and push upward into the air and sunshine, also the 
firm sub-surface soil gives the proper root-hold and environment 
which conduces to a rapid and strong growth of the young roots. 
Grasses, clover and alfalfa are not only much more likely to start 
poorly in a deep, loose seedbed, but even after starting, the young 
plants are much more likely to "freeze out" in winter or "burn 
out" in summer than will be the case in the shallow, firm-bottomed 
seedbed as described above. 

Clover should be sown in the spring or early summer because 
fall-seeded clover and alfalfa are apt to winter kill. 

Throughout a large part of Kansas grasses and alfalfa may be 
successfully seeded either early in the fall or early in the spring. 
On the whole perhaps the early spring seeding is safer, provided a 
good seedbed is provided and the land is not too foul with weeds. 
It is safest to sow almost all kinds of grasses and perennial legumes 
alone, or without a nurse crop. Always have the seedbed fully 
prepared before sowing the grass seed, so that little work will have 
to be done on the ground after seeding. If the seed is sown broad- 
cast, one light harrowing after seeding is usually sufficient to cover 
the seed, and is preferable to several harrowings or any deep work- 
ing of the soil after seeding. Grass seed should not be covered 
deeply, usually not more than an inch or so, or even less, depend- 
ing somewhat on the soil and the weather conditions. A good seed- 



GRASSES IN MICHIGAN 377 

bed may be prepared by disking and harrowing corn stubble land, 
or early fall plowing which has settled well makes a good seedbed 
for spring seeding. If it is necessary to plow shortly before seed- 
ing, the ground should be firmed by the use of a sub-surface packer 
or by repeated use of the harrow and roller. Along with a good 
seedbed do not fail to use the best quality of seed. The best is 
always the cheapest even at the higher price. 

Michigan. — Prof. R. S. Shaw, Director of the Michigan Experi- 
ment Station, East Lansing : The following grasses are most com- 
monly grown in Michigan : Timothy, orchard grass, bluegrass and 
redtop. I doubt very much whether there is any one grass that is 
used more than bluegrass in this state. I would place timothy 
second, redtop third and orchard grass fourth. No matter what 
combination of clovers and grasses may be sown in this state, at 
the end of five or six years bluegrass will have taken almost com- 
plete possession to the total exclusion of the other sorts. Blue- 
grass takes possession here naturally, if given sufficient time, without 
any seeding whatever. Redtop is being grown only on low-lying 
lands or in connection with permanent pasture mixtures. Legumes 
most commonly grown are red clover, both mammoth and medium, 
alsike and alfalfa. The medium red clover is very largely grown in 
the southern part of the Lower Peninsula, while the mammoth is 
grown in the northern part of that region. Alsike clover is being 
used very largely in connection wuth red clover 6 to 8 pounds, 
timothy 2 pounds and alsike 2 pounds. It has become a very com- 
mon practice to seed down for hay and pasture with a combination 
of this kind. The alfalfa area of this state is extending very rapidly. 
We have had a wide range of conditions here as regards soil and 
climate, and it has taken some little time to find out just how to 
handle this problem. Permanent pastures are to some extent fer- 
tilized by applications of well-rotted barnyard manure with the 
manure spreader as a top-dressing. I doubt very much whether any 
commercial fertilizers are used in this way and only a compara- 
tively small amount of lime. 

Minnesota. — Prof. Andrew Boss, Agriculturist of the Minne- 
sota Experiment Station, St. Anthony Park : The best grass in my 
estimation for pasture in Minnesota is Kentucky bluegrass, especially 
where the pasture is to remain for any length of time. The second 
best is the Austrian Brome grass or Bromus inermis. Third, 



378 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

timothy or preferably timothy mixed with a small amount of 
medium, alsike or white clover. There are fev/ others that are of 
any value for pasture. In short rotations and in temporary pas- 
tures, the common mixture of grass seeding is timothy 6 to 8 pounds, 
medium red clover 3 to 6 pounds, white clover ^ pound per acre. 
For permanent pasture the seeding would be somewhat lighter of 
these grasses with 8 to 14 pounds of Kentucky bluegrass added. 
On our rolling prairie lands where drainage is good, any of these 
seedings will do well for pasture. On low wet lands preference is 
given to timothy, redtop and alsike clover. For the drier and 
sandier lands the Austrian Brome grass seems to be best adapted. 
The common hay crop in Minnesota is timothy or a mixture of 
timothy and alsike or medium red clover. All three grow in profu- 
sion on land that is in good condition. On lowlands redtop and 
alsike with a small mixture of timothy are in high favor. In secur- 
ing a stand of these grasses it is customary to sow them in spring 
with the seeding of spring grains, preferably barley or spring 
wheat. Fall-sown rye or winter wheat also make a very desirable 
nurse-crop for grasses, the grass seed being sown the following 
spring. Splendid results are obtained in the management of our 
grasslands by top-dressing with barnyard manures. Both hay and 
pastures yield heavily to this treatment, though the application to 
the pasture should be made during the fall or early winter season. 

Mississippi. — Prof. W. L. Hutchinson, Director of the Mississippi 
Experiment Station, Agricultural College : Bermuda and carpet 
grass are the two essential pasture grasses for this state. Lespedeza, 
which is a clover, is perhaps of more importance than either as a 
pasture plant, as it appears in almost every pasture in the state and 
ranges in importance from being essentially the whole thing along 
down to about 50 per cent. White clover is an important pasture 
plant. Bur clover is very much less so, but more so every year ; 
that is, effort is constantly being made to increase the area of bur 
clover in the pasture. Lespedeza has spread all over this state by 
natural methods, very little having been planted, and because of 
this fact it appears in practically all pastures everywhere. It is a 
particularly valuable plant in the brown loam area in the western 
part of the state. This area extends from Tennessee to the Louis- 
iana line, and the Illinois Central Railroad runs through it. Ber- 
muda grass must be planted, and hence it does not appear over 



GRASSES IN MISSOURI 379 

nearly so large an area as does lespedeza, but where it has been 
planted one finds the Bermuda and lespedeza growing together, and 
this makes a better combination or better pasture than either plant 
by itself. In the southern part of the state carpet grass appears 
along the branch bottoms (what we are in the habit of calling 
draws) and like lespedeza spreads naturally, and in this section 
one will find carpet grass and lespedeza growing together. In the 
prairie section, in east Mississippi, on the worn areas thereof, par- 
ticularly where there is considerable exposure of the lime rock, 
melilotus, commonly called sweet clover or bokhara, is an import- 
ant pasture plant. On such areas, lespedeza makes the poorest 
stand, and in consequence is of less importance than on any other 
areas in the state ; but even in these pastures it doubtless assumes 
a value equal to melilotus. The very best combination I know is 
Bermuda, lespedeza, white clover, bur clover and vetch on the same 
land ; but the pasture area in this state on which one finds all of 
these plants is very limited indeed. To recapitulate, lespedeza is 
the universal pasture plant ; Bermuda is essentially the pasture 
grass for this section, but as it must be planted it does not appear 
over our entire pasture areas by any means. It is not nearly so 
general as lespedeza. Just what area we have in Bermuda I do 
not know. Then comes carpet grass in the moist bottom lands in 
the southern part of the state, while other important pasture plants 
are white clover, melilotus, bur clover and vetch. Lespedeza, Ber- 
muda, carpet grass, white clover and melilotus practically furnish 
the grazing in the pastures of this state, and if I should venture 
a remark I would say that lespedeza furnished more grazing than 
all of the others coml)incd on account of its being everywhere and 
the other plants growing only on limited areas. Johnson grass and 
Bermuda are essentially our hay grasses. Other hay plants of im- 
portance are alfalfa, lespedeza, cowpeas, oats, wheat and sorghum. 
Soybeans should and may become an important hay plant. The uni- 
versal hay proposition, applicable on every farm in the state, is 
wheat or oats sown in September and cut in the dough stage the 
latter part of May, then on the same land plant cowpeas or soy- 
beans, giving two hay crops a yea.T on the same land. 

Missouri. — Prof. H. J. Waters, Director of the Missouri Ex- 
periment Station, Columbia : Our studies have been principally 
with timothy meadows, but I have made considerable study of 



380 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

bluegrass pastures at the same time. I have been studying the 
Hfe-history of the timothy plant in connection with our investiga- 
tions of factors affecting the yield, and found, to my utter aston- 
ishment, that it is not a perennial, as is popularly supposed. That 
is to say, when a plant has sprung from the seed it does not 
have a period of some years of development, which would corre- 
spond to the youthful or growing period of an animal, and then 
a period of a few years of maximum efficiency and productive- 
ness, which would correspond to the period of prime of life of an 
animal, and then a period of decline and debility, corresponding 
to the old age period of an animal. On the other hand, plants 
spring anew each year from the old bulb, and the bulb, after it 
has produced its new plant, dies. This new plant produces, in 
addition to its top which we cut for hay, a new bulb to carry 
the plant over the following winter, and this in turn produces a 
new plant and dies. So that the timothy plant is an annual in 
the same sense at least that a potato is an annual. These studies 
are the very basis of our knowledge of the management of meadows 
and pastures. To say in a few words what the best grasses and 
clovers for Missouri are is practically impossible because of 
the great variation of the soil both physically and chemically. 
Moreover, Missouri covers a distance of 300 miles from north 
to south in a portion of the country where the flora and 
fauna of the north and south blend. For example, cotton is 
grown quite extensively in the southern portion of the state 
and some spring wheat is grown in the extreme western por- 
tion. Broadly speaking, there is but one hay grass in Missouri, 
timothy, and but two hay clovers, the common red clover and 
alfalfa, with a large reHance in the extreme southern portion of 
the state on the forage plant, the cowpea for hay. Likewise, broadly 
speaking, there is but one permanent pasture grass for Missouri, 
and that is Kentucky bluegrass, and but one permanent pasture 
clover, namely, white clover, which comes into bluegrass pastures 
without seeding and covers the ground during the resting period 
of the bluegrass, thereby giving the crop a much higher nutritive 
value and larger yield. I have divided the state into nine principal 
groups, as follows : 

1. The loess soil both north and south of the river which is open 
and friable and does not hold bluegrass well. This land, however 
is rich in lime and on it timothy thrives; so does red clover and 



GRASSES IN MISSOURI 381 

likewise alfalfa. Broadly speaking, the hay grasses are the three 
mentioned. The land is very valuable, and so far no permanent 
pasture is laid down as a rule, but the meadows are mowed for hay 
for one or two years then pastured for one or two years, cattle or 
hogs being fed on them and then broken up and put in corn for 
three or four years, then changed to oats for one year and again 
sown to timothy and red clover. 2. The black prairie soil of 
northwest Missouri and the best corn soil in the state. It is, 
however, of a little too coarse texture to produce bluegrass to the 
best advantage, although better adapted than is Region I, and is 
more generally used than is Group I, otherwise the practices of 
the two regions are identical. 3. Black limestone loam represents 
the highest development of bluegrass pastures in the state. The 
soil is capable of fully equaling the best bluegrass production 
in Kentucky. Here the pastures are permanent with large shade 
trees, the farmers breeding pure-bred stock to a large extent. The 
meadow grasses are timothy and red clover. Alfalfa does well 
on these soils and is coming to be more and more generally em- 
ployed. 4. The same as 2, plus clay and finer and tighter, there- 
fore better adapted to bluegrass than 2. Here the chief reliance is 
bluegrass and white clover, wdiile the hay grasses are with perhaps 
less reliance upon alfalfa than 1, 2, and 3. and more reliance upon 
cowpeas. 5. A level prairie region with a very compact soil of 
close texture and is the timothy region of the state. The great bulk 
of the timothy seed produced in the state is grown in this region. 
Clovers are not so extensively used and cowpeas are more widely 
relied upon. In this region timothy meadows are kept for 10 years 
or more without being plowed, although the trend is away from this 
practice. 6. A lighter soil of coarser texture with some lime and 
not so well adapted to either bluegrass or timothy or the clovers 
as the regions just mentioned. Here considerable redtop, orchard 
grass and the larger fescues find much favor, both for hay and 
pasture with considerable reliance on the cowpea as a forage plant. 
7. A limestone region in which red clover reigns supreme. The soil 
is of slightly too open texture for bluegrass to reach its best when 
first cleared. Continued tramping, however, rectifies this difficulty 
and ultimately this will also be a great bluegrass region. The chief 
reliance for hay here is timothy and red clover, and cowpeas. 
For pasture bluegrass and white clover in the older sections, and 
orchard grass and the tall fescues on the newer land, with the 



382 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

native bluestem in the uncleared wilds. 8. The region for which 
we have not yet found a dominant grass. All of the grasses named, 
however, do moderately well, but there does not seem to be any 
one that is taking possession of the country as yet. 9. A sandy 
region in which Bermuda grass is practically the only successful 
pasture grass, and where alfalfa is the principal hay on the black 
waxy soils, with cowpeas on the sandier phases. 

In all these regions in the wetter soils alsike clover is used instead 
of red clover and either English bluegrass (Festuca pratensis) or 
the tall fescues (Festuca elatior), or redtop (Agrostus vulgaris) 
is used instead of timothy. Likewise on the soils deficient in lime 
orchard grass or redtop is used instead of timothy, and cowpeas are 
used as a legume instead of red clover. 

Oklahoma. — Prof. L. A. Moorhouse, Agronomist of the Okla- 
homa Experiment Station, Stillwater: Bermuda grass is the only 
grass that has given satisfactory results on our upland soils in this 
section, and I believe that this statement will apply to many districts 
in Oklahoma. We have tested practically all of the standard grasses 
in this locality, and we have failed to secure profitable yields on the 
higher lands of central Oklahoma. While I believe that good crops 
of Brome grass or timothy or possibly English bluegrass might be 
secured on many of our creek and river bottom areas, I have the 
opinion that these areas should be set aside for alfalfa. We could 
not hope to harvest more than Ij/^ to 2 tons of hay with any of 
the types I have mentioned, but when alfalfa becomes well set on 
such areas we can harvest at least 5 tons of cured hay per annum. 
We therefore recommend that our more fertile soils be set aside 
for the culture of alfalfa; Bermuda grass and white clover will 
make a satisfactory combination for the thinner upland soils. The 
cowpea can also be utiHzed on such areas. English bluegrass or 
meadow fescue has been grown to some extent in the north central 
counties of Oklahoma, and I am informed that it produces very 
satisfactory yields. I have visited a few farms where this type is 
used and can say that growers presented very favorable results. 
Brome grass, on the other hand, is used in the northwestern 
counties of the state, while Kentucky bluegrass, orchard grass and 
timothy may be found over on the east side. I am satisfied that 
some field tests should be conducted in the localities where these 
types have been introduced, and as soon as our district agricultural 



GRASSES IN NEW ENGLAND 383 

schools are located we may have an opportunity to make further 
observations on growth of our standard grasses and clovers. 

Connecticut. — Prof. L. A. Clinton, Director of the Storrs Experi- 
ment Station, Eagleville : The best grass for pasturage purposes in 
Connecticut is Kentucky bluegrass. This is our natural grass 
which makes its appearance on all soils where the regular seeding 
fails, and it can be depended on with greater certainty than any 
other grass. For seeding down meadows, I recommend a mixture 
per acre of 8 quarts timothy, 6 quarts of redtop, 4 pounds of 
red clover and 2 pounds of alsike clover. For the first cutting 
this will give a larger percentage of clover hay. The second cutting 
should have a little clover, but it will be largely timothy and red- 
top. After a few crops of hay have been cut off if it is then turned 
into pasture it will be only a short time before it will be June-grass 
pasture, June-grass being Kentucky bluegrass. 

Prof. E. H. Jenkins, Director of Connecticut Experiment Station, 
New Haven : The best grass in general for lawns and for pastures 
which are closely cropped in this part of the country I believe is 
the Rhode Island bent, a small variety of agrosfis vulgaris. It will 
stand trampling, close grazing and dry weather better than any 
grass I know of, and makes sweet pasture. The yield is too small 
to make it a profitable hay grass. I have never seen the sheep's 
fescue used in pastures to any extent, but there are some strains 
of it that I have no doubt would make excellent pasture. Here 
timothy is universally grown where hay is to be sold, for it com- 
mands the best price, though redtop is known to be much more 
valuable for dairy use. Timothy and redtop are about the only 
grasses that are ever sown in this state. Occasionally one will 
find a farmer who has sown orchard grass in shady places and 
who makes some use of the meadow fescue in mixtures of timothy 
and redtop. 

New Hampshire. — Prof. F. W. Taylor, Agronomist of the New 
Hampshire Experiment Station, Durham : A large part of New 
England and especially New Hampshire is naturally adapted to the 
growth of our most valuable cultivated grasses, timothy, redtop, 
bluegrass, orchard grass, and the common clovers, with the excep- 
tion of crimson clover, find the soils and the climate here most con- 
genial for a permanent home. This is attested by the fact that 
many pastures and meadows continue to produce fair yields of grass 



384 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

and hay year after year without re-seeding. I have seen fields 
which have not been plowed for 30 or 40 years, and without the 
application of manure or fertilizer in the interim are still giving 
an annual production of a ton of hay per acre. I make this state- 
ment not as an approval of the practice but as an indication of the 
natural resources of the section for grass-growing. The best 
grasses for pastures, taking the state as a whole, in the order of 
their value and importance, are probably as follows : Kentucky 
bluegrass, timothy, white clover and wood meadow grass. For 
mowing lands or meadows the following are of most importance : 
Timothy, redtop, orchard grass and alsike clover. For re-seeding 
pastures the following mixtures would be recommended for seeding 
one acre: 

Heavy moist soils : Timothy 5 pounds, redtop 8 pounds, orchard 
grass 4 pounds, meadow foxtail 3 pounds, white clover 5 pounds. 

Light soils : Timothy 8 pounds, redtop 4 pounds, Kentucky blue- 
grass 8 pounds, orchard grass 8 pounds, white clover 4 pounds. 

Orchards and shady places : Timothy 6 pounds, redtop 4 pounds, 
Kentucky bluegrass 6 pounds, orchard grass 8 pounds, wood meadow 
grass 2 pounds, white clover 4 pounds. 

For re-seeding meadows the mixture per acre would be as follows : 

Heavy soils : Timothy 10 pounds, redtop 4 pounds, red clover 6 
pounds, alsike clover 4 pounds. 

Light soils : Timothy 8 pounds, redtop 4 pounds, orchard grass 
6 pounds, red clover 6 pounds, alsike clover 4 pounds. 

With the object of determining to what extent, by what means 
and at what expense our pasture lands can be improved, the experi- 
ment station began a series of experiments last year to continue for 
a period of four years. The cost and relative merits of the following 
treatments are to be studied: 

1. Harrow and re-seeding. 

2. Harrowing, re-seeding and liming. 

3. Harrowing, re-seeding, liming and fertilizing. 

4. Plowing and re-seeding. 

5. The pasturing of sheep. 

Although no definite results can yet be approximated the indica- 
tions from the first season's work are that plowing and reseeding 
constitutes the most economical method of pasture improvement. 

A series of fertilizer experiments on hay land now in operation 
for three years indicate that nitrogen fertilizers especially in the 



GRASSES IN NEW YORK 385 

form of nitrate of soda are the most effective in increasing the 
yield of timothy and redtop, while wood ashes and the potash 
fertilizers seem most efficient in maintaining and promoting the 
growth of the clovers. While the application of lime has been 
strongly advocated by many, its use on the soils of the college farm 
and on various others in this section of the state has not proved 
markedly beneficial. 

New York. — Prof. G. F. Warren, Professor of Farm ]\Ianagement 
and Farm Crops, New York State College of Agriculture, Ithaca: 
The one great hay grass in New York State is timothy, the second 
hay grass of importance is redtop. There are no other grasses of 
very great importance for hay production, although orchard grass, 
meadow fescue and several wild grasses are met with occasionally. 
The most important pasture grass is Kentucky bluegrass. Second 
in importance is timothy. Canada bluegrass is ver}^ common on 
the poorer lands. Redtop, meadow fescue and orchard grass occur 
to a considerable extent in pastures. AJammoth red and medium 
clovers are the most important legumes in the state. Second to 
these is alsike clover, and in all pasture mixtures white clover 
should be included. Where it grows successfully alfalfa is a most 
valuable hay plant for this state. For pastures a seeding of timothy, 
Kentucky bluegrass and white clover is always desirable. To this 
sometimes should be added redtop, orchard grass and meadow fes- 
cue. For hay production a standard mixture is timothy, mammoth 
clover, medium clover and alsike clover. To this redtop should be 
added under certain conditions. Alsike clover grows on land that 
is too acid or too poor for the growth of red clover; redtop grows 
on land that is too poor for the production of timothy, so that on the 
poorest lands, provided they are not manured and limed, it may 
sometimes pay to grow redtop or a mixture of redtop and alsike 
clover. Alsike clover is not grown quite so universally as it deserves 
to be. It is not so seriously affected by the root borer as red 
clover, and as stated will grow under more unfavorable soil condi- 
tions. Throughout this section of the state where there is limestone 
soil, alfalfa will grow readily. In practically every county in the 
state there are some soils on which alfalfa will produce an excellent 
crop, provided the land is limed, inoculated and manured. 

Prof. Paul J. White, Assistant Professor of Farm Crops, New 
York State College of Agriculture. Ithaca : What are the best 



386 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

grasses for New York State named in order for pasture? First, 
Kentucky bluegrass; second, timothy; third, Canada bluegrass; 
fourth, redtop. We have hardly arrived at the point where we can 
give definite instructions regarding mixtures for various soil types. 
Many letters from farmers regarding this matter come in. If I do 
not know the soil type I usually give them the following mixture : 
10 pounds of timothy, 4 pounds of Kentucky bluegrass, 3 pounds of 
redtop, 3 pounds of orchard grass, 6 pounds of red clover, 4 pounds 
of alsike clover and 2 pounds of white clover. I do not include in 
this Canada bluegrass which I place third in value as a pasture 
grass. The reason is this : Canada bluegrass is thought by many 
to be a weed in pastures. However, throughout the sections of 
New York State where the soil has become impoverished there 
are large areas of which the principal grass is Canada bluegrass. 
This statement is true of the hill farms of southern New York, 
and of the formerly fertile clay or silt valleys of the Genesee Valley 
regions in Livingston county. If I were to place these in order 
of abundance of the grasses in general, I should place redtop before 
Canada bluegrass, but our experience with redtop has been that cattle 
avoid this wherever they can get any other grass. It seems to 
be unpalatable. However, if the farmer states that his land is 
incHned to be acid and poorly drained, I always recommend 3 to 4 
pounds of redtop in the mentioned mixture. If I know that the 
field is fertile and will grow meadow fescue I recommend' the 
growing of this in small quantities, say 3 to 4 pounds per acre. 
I find this grass present in pastures in the fertile sections of New 
York state. It is considered fine where it will grow. 

I have included clovers in the mixture which I recommend. As to 
value, they will be arranged in the following order: First, red 
clover ; second, alsike clover ; third, white clover. This exhausts 
the list of clovers adapted to our conditions. I would arrange our 
grasses for meadows in the following order : First, timothy ; second, 
redtop ; third, Canada bluegrass. Timothy is the universal meadow 
grass in New York. We may say that it is always included in the 
new seeding unless clovers alone are sowed. Occasionally a farmer 
will use redtop. This, however, is not considered in the same class 
as timothy. It does not make a marketable hay. In the old meadows 
which have not been plowed for a number of years, especially 
on the hill lands of our state, we find a great deal of Canada blue- 
grass. They consider this a very superior hay grass for horses. 



GRASSES IN NEW YORK 387 

However, its market qualities are poor. It is never sown for hay, 
but it comes into the old fields which have not been plowed for a 
long time. On my own farm I cut 70 acres the past season of this 
grass. It yielded about one-half ton of hay per acre. This is worth 
on the market $10 per ton, while timothy is worth $13. We use 
red clover, either medium or mammoth, and alsike clover in 
meadows. No others are used. Usually about 10 quarts of timothy 
to 6 or 8 quarts of red clover are sown per acre. 

Regarding the system of management and fertilization of meadows 
and pastures, I have but little to offer apart from the general 
practice of other sections. We consider that timothy should not 
be left down as a meadow longer than two or three years. The 
first year we cut a crop of clover, and the second and third years 
the hay is practically all timothy. We have been carrying on a 
series of experiments with farmers in connection with co-operative 
experiments which go to indicate that 100 pounds or so of nitrate 
of soda per acre will increase the yield of timothy hay more than 
enough to pay for the fertilizer and labor. This, however, we 
do not recommend to be applied to timothy meadows which are not 
at the present time producing more than a ton of timothy hay. 

Under ordinary conditions I always recommend sowing timothy, 
Kentucky bluegrass and white clover. These are found growing 
naturally in all parts of this state, and on practically all kinds 
of soil. They may not be the principal plants occupying each type 
of soil, but they are there in greater or less numbers for permanent 
pasture. I think that Kentucky bluegrass should always be included 
in a new seeding because it will increase from year to year. White 
clover is a pasture plant which eventually appears in nearly all types 
of soil, but it should be sown occasionally. It is in and out and 
adds materially to the forage of pastures I often recommend to 
farmers that they sow on their old pastures a light mixture of some 
of the principal grasses and clovers. I think from $1 to $3 worth of 
seed at a time will pay for itself and more in the course of a 
year or two. Prof. Samuel Fraser, manager of the Wadsworth 
Estate at Geneseo, sows from 60 cents to $1 worth of seed per acre. 
About 500 acres, he tells me, were thus reseeded last year. He states 
that he would prefer a light seeding to a heavy one. In case the 
seeding fails he can try again another year. If, however, heavy 
seeding had been applied the loss would be great. Without doubt 
the application of stable manure to our run-down pastures is of vast 



388 



MEADOWS AND PASTURES 



importance in increasing their efficiency. As I often tell the farmer, 
he would not misuse his other crops as he does his pastures. For 
instance, he would not expect to get a crop of corn or timothy 
hay without seeding and fertilizing. 

Massachusetts. — Prof. William P. Brooks, Director of the 
Massachusetts Experiment Station, Amherst : The best single grass 
for all pastures having soils fairly retentive of moisture is Ken- 
tucky bluegrass ; and the best single clover is of course the white. 
There can be no doubt, however, that it is best to use a large variety 
of grasses in pastures. I have generally advised about as follows : 

MIXTURES FOR PERMANENT PASTURES. 



Variety. 



Light soils. 



Medium soils. 



Heavy soils. 



Timothy 

Redtop 

Orchard grass 

Meadow fescue 

Hard fescue 

Tall fescue 

Rough-stalked meadow grass 

Kentucky bluegrass. 

Italian ryegrass 

Tall oatgrass 

Meadow foxtail 

Yellow oatgrass 

Sweet vernal 

White clover 

Alsike clover 

Peavine clover 



Pounds 
3 



Pounds. 
4 



Pounds. 
3 

5 

4 
4 
2 
4 
4 
5 
2 



Montana. — Prof. F. B. Linfield, Director of the Montana Experi- 
ment Station, Bozeman : In our irrigated country we are using to 
a considerable extent mixed grasses for pasture. These seem to 
grow better at all seasons of the year and enable us to get the 



GRASSES IN MASSACHUSETTS 389 

maximum return from the land. On the average we find that it 
takes not quite an acre of land for the season to support one 
cattle beast with an irrigated pasture. Probably orchard grass, 
brome grass, English ryegrass are about the three best pasture 
grasses, but in our mixture we nearly always use in bluegrass 
timothy and tall oat if we can get it. Of the clovers the red, alsike 
and alfalfa we use, the former of course being in this climate 
biennial as a rule, and so does not persist for many years. The 
alsike and the alfalfa are persistent. We do not, however, like 
to have too much of these clovers, as with the luxuriant growth 
under irrigation there is some danger from bloat if the clovers 
predominate. For our dry-land country we have not yet determined 
to our satisfaction what are the best pasture grasses. The native 
grasses we find do not yield as well as some of our cultivated 
varieties, even on the dry bench lands. Alfalfa has been one of our 
most promising fodder crops and also pasture crops on the bench 
lands. Brome and tall oat grass also seem to do very well. There 
are other grasses which we expect to try, but are not yet able to 
advise as to their adaptability. In our studies on the bench lands 
the experiments so far conducted have not been continued long 
enough to warrant us in drawing very positive conclusions. 

Nebraska. — Prof. E. A. Burnett, Director of the Nebraska Ex- 
periment Station, Lincoln : It is difficult to determine the best list 
of grasses and clovers for any region of Nebraska, and much 
more so for a region which would cover so large an area as one- 
half of the state. I have asked some of our leading farmers to 
give me their experience in the matter, a summary of which, along 
with my own experience would indicate something as follows : 

Best grasses for pasture in the Eastern half of Nebraska: 
I. Meadow fescue. 2. Bromus inermis. 3. Orchard grass. 4. Tim- 
othy. 

Best grasses for pasture in the Western half of Nebraska : 1. 
Bromus inermis. 2. Western wheat grass, native. 3. Meadow fes- 
cue. 4. Grama grasses, native. 

As you go north in the state, past the center, the district in 
which brome grass would be superior to meadow fescue as the best 
single grass would extend to the east. In north-central and north- 
eastern Nebraska these two grasses would be of about equal merit 
and should be sown together. As a pasture mixture for eastern 



390 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

Nebraska I would suggest 8 pounds of meadow fescue, 6 pounds 
of Bromus inermis or Bromus inermis and timothy, 2 pounds of 
red clover, 3 pounds of alfalfa and 1 pound of white clover. Omit 
white clover where pasture is largely for horses. Omit red clover 
and alfalfa where the land is extremely wet so that they will winter- 
kill. As a mixture for upland pasture in the western part of the 
state I would suggest 10 pounds of brome grass, 4 pounds of meadow 
fescue and 6 pounds of alfalfa. In valleys sow less alfalfa where 
cattle are to be pastured. For permanent meadows, alfalfa seems 
to be superior to all others when yield and value of hay are con- 
sidered. Alfalfa does not seem to fit into a rotation of crops as 
well as clover, and where meadows are in a farm rotation in eastern 
Nebraska, 10 pounds of clover and 8 pounds of timothy hay make 
an excellent mixture, and furnish a high quality of hay. In south- 
eastern Nebraska it would seem that bluegrass, where some mix- 
ture of white clover is present, furnishes one of the most valuable 
pastures, especially for early spring and for winter pasture where 
it has been allowed to grow up and mature before being pastured 
down. In the care and management of pastures it is apparent that 
the experience of all good farmers is against close pasturing at any 
season of the year, and especially so as the period of hot, dry 
weather approaches. Pastures should always have a sufficient 
amount of growth on them to protect them against burning sun 
and against the loss of water by run-off where it would be absorbed 
if there were sufficient growth on the ground. 

The experience of our best farmers indicates that pastures should 
be mowed once or twice each year, first at the time when ragweed 
and other coarse-growing weeds begin to mature in late June or 
the early part of July, and second, if necessary, to get a few coarse- 
growing weeds in the early part of September, before they have 
ripened their seed. The experience of our farmers indicates that 
the application of barnyard manure with a manure spreader very 
greatly increases the productiveness of all upland pastures and prob- 
ably of all pastures which are not liable to overflow from streams ; 
that this manure can be applied at almost any season of the year 
but can best be applied during the winter season, beginning in late 
fall and continuing until growth starts in the spring. An annual 
application of manure to upland pastures has very greatly increased 
and has frequently doubled the stock carrying power of these pas- 
tures. It is good practice — where manure is applied to pastures — • 



GRASSES IN NEBRASKA 391 

to run over the land with a harrow and thoroughly break up and 
distribute this manure so that it shall not lie in clods upon the land, 
if it has not been evenly spread at the time of its appHcation. The 
application of manure t© meadows is as beneficial as to pastures, 
but where coarse manure is applied in the winter it should be 
thoroughly harrowed in the spring and the coarser parts raked off 
and removed, so that it will not damage the first cutting of hay. 

Carl Rohde, Columbus, Neb. : My soil is all upland. The grass 
mixture which I sowed consisted of brome grass, 12 pounds ; orchard 
grass, 6 pounds ; meadow fescue, 6 pounds ; alsike clover, 2 or 3 
pounds ; white clover, 1 pound. This pasture was seeded in 1904, 
and has proved quite satisfactory ever since. We have always 
been careful not to overstock it. I like the clover mixture in the 
pasture, although we lost one heifer in June, 1907, on account of it. 
As a general rule cattle will leave clover alone until it is matured 
and the other grasses get shorter on account of a hot and dry spell, 
which generally strikes us in the latter part of July and August. 
For fertilization we have practised top-dressing with a manure 
spreader, putting on about six loads to the acre. The effect of this 
was quite marked, and I recommend it where the soil conditions are 
similar. I do not carry more than one grown animal on every two 
acres of pasture, but at that rate we have kept cattle as well as 
pasture in excellent condition. The growth of the brome grass is 
quite pronounced and easily determined on account of the broad 
leaves and vigorous appearance, but I think that the other grasses 
fit in well with the mixture. Regarding clover, I consider alfalfa 
our stand-by, as it furnishes the best yield per acre, and seems to 
be just what we need for our stock, with the present high price of 
corn. Could we be sure however of getting a stand of red clover, 
by sowing in wheatfields in the spring of the year, I think it would 
fit in a little better with our crop rotation, especially when we con- 
sider the bad results obtained by a good many farmers during the 
past summer in plowing up alfalfa fields, and putting them into 
corn. If reports are true, these fields were the first to show the 
effects of the drouth. We do not like bluegrass for our upland; 
it does not attain sufficient length. It does all right in valleys. 

William Ernst: Of all pasture grasses in southwestern Nebraska 
Kentucky bluegrass gives the most service if properly handled. If 
you have enough of it horses and cattle will live on it and thrive 
the year round if not covered with sleet or snow. The original 



392 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

prairie grasses have practically all disappeared, killed out by the 
trampling of stock and the remainder was crowded out by Ken- 
tucky bluegrass and white clover. These are the pastures I like 
better than even the pastures of mixed grasses sown on cultivated 
lands and which finally run to bluegrass and white clover in the 
same manner as the native pastures mentioned and which seem to 
have stronger growth. The service and revenue of any pasture 
depend more on the handling than on the rainfall during the season. 
We did not think much of the Kentucky bluegrass until we learned 
how to handle it. We would turn the stock out onto the pasture, 
at the first starting of spring, before the grass was tall enough to 
get hold of it with their teeth, and see that all stock would be 
turned on that could possibly make a living on it. This being 
kept up until perhaps June would present on the more or less 
rolling land in eastern Nebraska a pasture of short, thick growth, 
on which an inch, two or more inches of rain would run off with- 
out soaking the ground one inch in depth; while in the adjoin- 
ing cornfield the soil was soaked to such an extent that cultivation 
had to be postponed for two or more days. This condition would 
not change until fall rains and cooler nights brought some im- 
provement. All this taught us that we must have a good growth 
of grass in any pasture in order to catch and retain the moisture 
necessary to have a good growth of grass during the season. A 
good bluegrass pasture wants fertile soil. 

We handle our bluegrass pastures as follows : We turn our 
stock on as early as March when the new grass comes through the 
thick growth of old grass of the former season. Horses and 
cattle will do remarkably well until about May when they are 
turned onto the mixed pastures. In this way the stock does not 
know the change from dry feed to summer pasture. We now let 
our pasture rest until nearly harvest and mow the ragweeds that 
will be ready to cut the first week in July. If not cut they will 
greatly injure the stock, the horses in particular, in which the 
bloom-dust of the ragweed will produce an eye inflammation similar 
to pinkeye. This weed, if not mown, will greatly hamper the 
growth of grass, absorbing most of the moisture and holding down 
the growth, while if mown it will not be harmful to the pasture ; 
on the contrary, it will act as a mulch and serve to hold up the 
tall, rank growth of bluegrass. The stock now may be kept on 
pasture until snow covers them, which is usually about the middle 



GRASS MIXTURES FOR NEBRASKA 393 

of December. Stock is kept on these pastures only in sufficient 
number to leave plenty of grass to hold the snow. In this way 
we have nearly eight months of pasture from our Kentucky blue- 
grass. 

We cannot keep the clover out, and while we do not think it im- 
proves the feeding value of the pasture, we do think it gives new 
life to the bluegrass, which is perhaps due to the nitrogen introduced 
in the soil by the clover. Horses in particular would be better off 
without the clover, as it makes them slobber. Clover and timothy 
make a good fall pasture. While we do not sow clover for that 
purpose, it naturally comes in in that way. We sow the clover for 
fertilizing purposes, sowing all our small grain to clover regardless 
of what the next crop may be. Spring sowing often gives 30 to 
40 days' good pasture during August until plowed up for winter 
wheat, enough to pay for the seed. Alfalfa not fitting well in our 
rotation of crops, we set aside for meadow and hog pasture, with 
a partition fence to divide it into halves, mowing and pastur- 
ing, turn about ; that is to sa}-, mow one-half the first of one month 
and pasture the next and so on, turn about. A good all-round 
pasture was always obtained by sowing the following mixture : 

Meadow fescue, 12 pounds ; orchard grass, 4 pounds ; brome grass, 
4 to 8 pounds ; timoth}-, 1 pound ; red clover, 1 pound. 

This mixture would be about right for central Nebraska. Going 
north I would increase the brome grass and decrease the meadow 
fescue in proportion ; while going south I would reverse the change ; 
that is, increase the meadow fescue and decrease the brome grass. 
These grasses may be sown with or without nurse-crops and if 
once established are quite drouth and heat-resistant. We have used, 
if convenient, the first growth for hay, but found it lacking in 
quality when compared with clover and timothy. The pasture of 
the mixture usually is good by May 1, and will last until killed 
by frost. It may be improved by mowing it high when seeds are 
formed by the principal grasses, but the cHpping is usually worth 
as much when left to lie on the ground as when taken off for hay. 
It will renew the pasture from year to year and make a thicker 
stand and sod, which are both desirable for this mixture of 
grasses. Here again, the same as recommended for the bluegrass 
pasture, a big heavy top is at all times preferable to excessive short- 
ness, as it will hold the moisture of the soil needed for big juicy 
growth of vegetation. 



394 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

As to the relative feeding value of the three principal grasses, 
I have no positive knowledge, but know that they supplement each 
other admirably, for the reason that they do not ripen all at the 
same time. Meadow fescue after clipping or cutting for seed will 
remain tender and to some degree for a longer time than either 
brome or orchard grass. For real winter pasture there is perhaps 
nothing better than winter rye, unless it be Kentucky bluegrass, 
reserved for that purpose. Rye sown early in the fall on ground 
calculated for corn may be pastured closely until May 1, when a 
disk should be set to work and thoroughly kill it before planting 
to corn. All remaining rye will not help the corn ; on the con- 
trary, it saps the ground of moisture and is obstructive to good 
cultivation. Winter rye sown in the spring will not go to straw 
much before July, and has helped us out as hog pasture and has 
acted as a nurse-crop for grasses sown in the early spring. We 
have been able to pasture the spring-sown grasses right after mowing 
about July 1. 

North Dakota. — Prof. J. H. Shepperd, Director of the North 
Dakota Experiment Station, Agricultural College: Timothy, brome 
grass and redtop have the field for meadow and pasture production 
in this state. Brome grass finds its place in the drier districts where 
timothy does not succeed, and where it in turn is readily killed by 
ordinary cultivation operations when the grower is through with 
it. Redtop is utilized for wet land that is subject to flooding. 
Bluegrass is highly valued here as elsewhere for lawn-producing 
purposes, but it is only a fair success where water cannot be pro- 
cured for it, in the eastern part of the state, and is a failure in the 
dry-land districts where an artificial water supply cannot be admin- 
istered. Red clover is the most successful of the entire group of its 
kind and is seconded by alsike. Mammoth clover survives here, but 
is not so satisfactory as the common red strain. White clover is 
used in connection with bluegrass for growing lawns. 

Ohio. — Prof. Chas. E. Thorne, Director of the Ohio Experiment 
Station, Wooster: We are comparing grasses in a small way, but 
thus far have found nothing that would encourage us to expect 
from it any superiority to our old and long-tested bluegrass and 
redtop. Next to these I would place the tall fescue from my per- 
sonal experience with it before the station was established. It is 
especially adapted to redtop soils and possesses some points of con- 



GRASSES IN OREGON 395 

siderable superiority, starting earlier in the spring and giving later 
pastures in the fall. The only objection to this grass is the greater 
expense of the seed and the difficulty of getting pure seed, as the 
seedsmen are disposed to substitute the inferior meadow fescue, or 
even the English perennial ryegrass, which, while a splendid grass in 
England, has not given similar results in our work by a long way. 
IVTy advice, therefore, has been to sow for permanent pastures a 
mixture of timothy, medium red clover, alsike clover, Kentucky blue- 
grass and redtop, the idea being that the red clover will occupy the 
land practically but one year, and will leave additional fertility 
for the grass following. The timothy will generally disappear within 
two or three years, and by that time the redtop and blue grass will 
be ready to occupy the land. The alsike seems to be better adapted 
to moist situations and to be a little more permanent in its character 
than the red clover. I am convinced that our permanent meadows 
and pastures need regular and systematic fertilizing just as much 
as do the grain fields, and that one serious defect in our system 
of agriculture is the neglect of this point. I regret that we have 
no definite experiments on this point, such as we have in the 
management of cereals. We are now instituting a series of experi- 
ments in the renewing and improving of pastures, similar to those 
in progress in Scotland. 

Oregon. — Prof. James Withycombe, Director of the Oregon Ex- 
periment Station, Corvallis : There are many native grasses in this 
state, but few are of much economic value. Among these are the 
bunch grasses {Agropyron, divergens and spicatuiii) and the sheep 
fescues. The former are found in the range districts of eastern 
Oregon and the latter are practically distributed all over the state. 
The bunch grasses, however, cannot withstand severe grazing, con- 
sequently are in a large measure' destroyed. After the destruction 
of the bunch grasses the festucas make their appearance. The 
station has tested about 150 varieties of grasses collected from all 
parts of the world. Many of these did well, but only a few were 
considered of especial value. Among the very best for western 
Oregon are EngHsh ryegrass, Italian ryegrass, orchard grass and 
meadow fescue. These are the best for both pasture and hay. 
For seeding meadow land it is well to add a small amount of 
timothy, redtop and Kentucky bluegrass. Kentucky bluegrass does 
well on the irrigated or moist soils of eastern and southern Oregon, 



396 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

which are usually well supplied with lime. There are some 17 native 
varieties of clover found in Oregon ; thus the common varieties of 
clover do well. Red clover of course is the best, then come alsike 
and white. Crimson clover has not been very successfully grown. 
If it can be germinated early in the fall it will make a good crop. 
Alsike clover does remarkably well on what is locally known as 
"white land." This is a whitish clay land, very wet during winter 
and practically devoid of humus. Where a seed crop is not de- 
sired the red and alsike clovers are sown together and the combin- 
ation makes a very desirable hay. 

Clover is usually sown in the spring with grain, although some 
of our best farmers sow it alone or with about 1 pound of rape 
seed per acre. This latter method is very popular in some dis- 
tricts on account of the excellent fall pasture it affords for sheep 
and other small stock. Another popular method for a somewhat 
permanent pasture or meadow is to sow the clovers in the spring 
and the grass seeds the following fall. Another popular system is 
to sow red clover in the spring and timothy in the fall. This is 
usually done for hay. The first hay crop is clover, the next is 
half clover and half timothy and the next is practically clean 
timothy. Gypsum is wonderfully helpful to all of the legumes, so 
the general practice among our better farmers is to sow from 50 
to 75 pounds of g>^psum per acre each spring on all of their 
leguminous crops. This practice has been found good in pastures, 
particularly when clover is present. 

Little work has been done in this state in the way of rejuvenating 
pastures and meadows. Some of our more progressive farmers 
have secured excellent results from the application of a light coat- 
ing of barnyard compost, disking and where needed re-seeding, 
which is covered by harrowing. This should be done early in the 
fall so that the first general rains will germinate the seeds. Over- 
pasturing is the bane of the meadows and pastures. Close grazing 
during the dry period is very destructive to the better grasses and 
clovers. 

Rhode Island.— Dr. H. J. Wheeler, Director of the Rhode Is- 
land Experiment Station, Kingston: For ordinary open uplands 
the best grasses for Rhode Island are timothy {phleum pratense) 
and redtop. Common red clover and particularly alsike clover are 
also very desirable. From my experience, orchard grass is only 



GRASSES IN SOUTH CAROLINA 397 

to be recommended for use where there is more or less shade and 
in somewhat moist lands. For land which is too moist for the best 
success with some of the other grasses tall meadow, oatgrass, 
bromus inermis and meadow fescue can be successfully grown, and 
I wish to lay particular emphasis on the last one. For pasture 
purposes in this state I consider Kentucky bluegrass and Rhode 
Island bent the best, though Kentucky bluegrass will not succeed 
generally without the use of lime or wood ashes, while Rhode Island 
bent will grow on our natural soil very readily. 

South Carolina.— Prof. J. N. Harper, Director of the South 
CaroHna Experiment Station, Clemson College : Bermuda is with- 
out doubt our very best grass. It makes a splendid pasture and can 
be grazed for about seven months during the year. It withstands 
drouth well and loves sunlight. As it does not seed in this climate 
it is propagated by planting the underground stems. The early 
spring is the best time to plant it. The best way to start Bermuda 
is to lay off 3' rows with a turning plow. Drop the particles of 
Bermuda in these furrows about every 10" to 12". Bermuda should 
follow bur clover, vetch, cowpeas, soybeans or beggar weed. At 
the time the plants are dropped in the open furrows, 100 pounds of 
acid phosphate, 50 pounds of kainit and 150 pounds of cottonseed- 
meal should be applied in the furrow and then covered with a 
turning plow by running one furrow. About April 15, the following 
year, 75 pounds of nitrate of soda should be applied as a top-dress- 
ing. The second year after planting, plow shallow with a Hght 
turning plow or disk harrow and sow cowpeas, cutting the cow- 
peas off in the early fall. This should be repeated about every 
third or fourth year. Bur clover planted in Bermuda pasture also 
greatly benefits it. 

The best time to harvest Bermuda is just after heading. In this 
climate it is usually ready to begin to pasture with hogs and sheep 
about June 1. On our bottom lands it makes a splendid meadow 
grass. Bermuda pastures and meadows should not be allowed to 
remain in grass except in permanent pastures more than 10 years. 
Bermuda is rich in carbohydrates and almost as good as timothy 
hay. It is of great benefit to our soils because it fills the soil with 
humus and fibrous roots. The underground stems are perennial; 
the plant is annual. Its worst enemy in our pastures is the paspalum 
grass. It is a heavy feeder on nitrogen. We get an average of 
from 1 to 5 tons of hay from rich bottom soils. 



398 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

Texas bluegrass {Poa arichnifera) is another grass well adapted 
to this section. The sod should be planted in October or Novem- 
ber or March or April. Plant the same as Bermuda. The rotations 
should be the same as Bermuda. It should be fertilized about the 
same as Bermuda except it is well to use nitrate of soda, about 50 
pounds per acre at the time of putting out the sod. It should be 
cut for hay when in full bloom. It does not make a very good hay 
and should be used entirely for pasturing. The rootstock is peren- 
nial; the stem is annual. Its weed enemies are broom sedge, Ber- 
muda, burdock and sour dock. It is a heavy feeder on nitrogen. 
The source of seed should be southern Texas. It is best adapted 
to a clayey soil or sandy loam with clay subsoil. 

Bur clover is perhaps one of the best clovers for this country. 
While it does not afford very good grazing, it is one of our greatest 
soil-improvers. This year I obtained 50 bushels of seed from one- 
third of an acre. The seed was harvested the middle of June. I 
have now growing on the patch, corn, cowpeas, German millet and 
sorghum and these crops are as fine as I ever saw on the rich soils 
of Kentucky. 

Crimson clover is also a splendid clover. It makes good hay and 
puts the soil in good shape. Japan clover or lespedeza is a splendid 
pasture clover. Red clover can be grown with us after the land has 
been made rich. White clover is a very good plant for our pastures. 
It does well in a pasture of Texas bluegrass. Orchard grass prob- 
ably comes next to Texas bluegrass. We get from 1^ to 2 tons 
of hay on our soils that have been improved. Redtop also does well, 
and Johnson grass, while it is a pest in our cornfields, is a splendid 
meadow grass. We get from 2 to 3 tons per acre, and sometimes 
as much as 4 tons on our rich bottom lands. I would place the 
legumes in this order : Cowpeas, soybeans, Russian vetch, Florida 
beggarweed, bur clover, and crimson clover. 

North Carolina. — Prof. B. W. Kilgore of the North Carolina 
Department of Agriculture, Raleigh: The best grass for pasture in 
the eastern two-thirds of the state is unquestionably Bermuda. We 
can hardly say there is a second-best, though Japan clover or les- 
pedeza with Bermuda will likely occupy second place. On our low, 
wet and valley lands which furnish most of the pasturage for the 
eastern two-thirds of the state, there are a number of native grasses 
which give good pasturage. For the western third of the state 



NORTH CAROLINA GRASSES 399 

bluegras*s stands first, with redtop second and timothy or tall 
meadow oatgrass third and fourth. For the Piedmont and moun- 
tain sections we recommend red clover, timothy and redtop. For 
the eastern or sandy portion of the state we recommend Italian rye 
and tall meadow oatgrass for hay. As to clovers for the Piedmont 
and mountain sections, red clover stands first and for the eastern 
part crimson clover, though crimson clover is grown as a winter 
crop to a considerable extent in the mountains and in the Piedmont 
section. 

For the coastal plain section the best grasses for pasturage pur- 
poses are Bermuda grass (root cuttings), redtop, orchard grass, 
white clover, Japan clover, mammoth clover, alsike clover. 

Mixtures for permanent pastures are. No. 1 : Bermuda grass 
(root cuttings). One every 12" in 2' furrows. Cuttings should be 
about 4" long. Japan clover, 12 pounds. No. 2 : redtop, 20 pounds ; 
mammoth clover, 10 pounds. Seeding per acre 30 pounds. No. 3 : 
Orchard grass, 10 pounds; redtop, 10 pounds; tall meadow oat, 7 
pounds ; meadow fescue, 7 pounds. Seeding per acre, 34 pounds. 

For a permanent pasture in low woodland, No. 1 : Redtop, 14 
pounds; perennial rye, 10 pounds; tall meadow oat, 5 pounds; 
alsike clover, 5 pounds. Seeding per acre, 34 pounds. 

Grasses for pasturage purposes in the Piedmont and mountain 
sections : Redtop, timothy, orchard grass, bluegrass, mammoth 
clover, alsike clover, white clover, red clover. 

Best grasses for meadows : Redtop, fodder grass, bluegrass, 
meadow fescue, orchard grass, tall meadow oat, Japan clover, mam- 
moth clover, red clover, alsike clover. 

Mixtures for permanent pasture, No. 1: Orchard grass, 10 pounds; 
tall meadow oat, 10 pounds ; bluegrass, 5 pounds, red clover, 5 
pounds. Seeding per acre, 30 pounds. No. 2 : Orchard grass, 10 
pounds ; redtop, 10 pounds ; bluegrass, 4 pounds ; red clover, 6 
pounds. Seeding per acre, 30 pounds. No. 3 : Timothy, 10 pounds ; 
meadow fescue, 5 pounds ; bluegrass, 5 pounds ; mammoth clover, 
10 pounds. Seeding per acre, 30 pounds. 

For meadows. No. 1 : Timothy, 14 pounds ; redtop, 10 pounds ; 
mammoth clover, 6 pounds. Seeding per acre 30 pounds. No. 2 : 
Redtop, 25 pounds ; alsike clover, 5 pounds. Seeding per acre, 30 
pounds. 

For permanent pastures in woodland (mountain sides), No. 1: 
Orchard grass, 14 pounds ; redtop, 7 pounds ; tall meadow oat, 6 



400 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

pounds ; bluegrass, 3 pounds ; red clover, 5 pounds. Seeding pef 
acre, 35 pounds. 

For permanent pasture in creek bottoms and other low lands. No. 
1 : Timothy, 14 pounds ; redtop, 10 pounds ; alsike clover, 6 pounds. 
No. 2 : Redtop, 24 pounds ; alsike clover, 6 pounds. Seeding per 
acre, 30 pounds. No. 3 : Redtop, 14 pounds ; meadow fescue, 10 
pounds ; white clover, 6 pounds. Seeding per acre, 30 pounds. 
No. 4 : Redtop, 14 pounds ; tall meadow oat, 10 pounds ; fowl 
meadow fescue, 6 pounds. Seeding per acre, 30 pounds. No. 5 : 
Redtop, 14 pounds ; tall meadow fescue, 10 pounds ; Canada blue- 
grass, 6 pounds. Seeding per acre, 30 pounds. No. 6 : Tall 
meadow oat, 24 pounds ; alsike clover, 6 pounds. Seeding per acre, 
30 pounds. 

Wyoming. — Prof, Aven Nelson, Secretary of the Wyoming State 
Board of Horticulture, Laramie : Until within comparatively recent 
years we have depended very largely on the native grasses both for 
pasture and for meadow. Now, however, we are growing a number 
of standard grasses in meadows and to some extent pastures are 
being made. Of the introduced grasses I think timothy takes first 
place as a hay grass and bluegrass and redtop as pasture grasses. 
It is scarcely worth naming any legume other than alfalfa. It is 
grown very extensively now and is without doubt our most valu- 
able forage plant. Red and alsike clover are also used, but hold a 
distinctly secondary place. 

Texas. — Prof. H, H. Harrington, Director of the Texas Experi- 
ment Stations, Fort Worth : We have no grass comparable to 
Bermuda in all that part of the state where rainfall is sufficient 
to produce a proper growth, say east of the 100th meridian, or 
where rainfall of from 22 to 25" exists. West of this line where the 
rainfall is lighter, the various mesquite grasses and grama grass 
are the best grazing grasses. A variety of the mesquite known as 
Tobosa along the plains and vallej^s north and east of Davis Moun- 
tains is an excellent pasture grass and makes a good quality of hay, 
the hay being preferred by liverymen to alfalfa; but when the grass 
gets dry in the field in winter it becomes very tough, and of course 
less valuable. Where the rainfall is more, rescue grass and bur 
clover succeed well and a mixture of these sown in alfalfa sod 
makes desirable pasturage. The bur clover serves for winter graz- 
ing, and early in the spring the rescue grass comes up in the 



GRASSES IN TEXAS 401 

clover, and this is followed by the Bermuda. Lespedeza, or Japan 
clover does fairly well in the eastern part of the state. It like Ber- 
muda is especially valuable to prevent hillside washing. It will 
grow on very thin land and thrives on such land much better than 
Bermuda, but it requires more rainfall and more sunshine to succeed 
best. In the Panhandle, orchard grass and Kentucky bluegrass 
do well. I would put Bermuda as the best for pasture in the 
central and eastern part of the state. In the western part the mes- 
quite grass and in the eastern part crab grass perhaps would be 
second to Bermuda, this to follow rescue grass in the spring. 
Lespedeza for summer pasture and bur clover for winter pasture 
among the clovers. Of course where alfalfa can be grown it is 
the best pasture clover, especially for hogs and almost equally good 
for horses; but Bermuda has so much wider adaptability that it is 
superior even to alfalfa in general utility. Crab grass requires con- 
siderable rainfall. It is of course in the nature of a farm pest, 
especially detrimental to alfalfa. At the same time it affords good 
fall pasturage and makes an excellent hay. 

For meadows, Johnson grass is perhaps superior to all others. 
Buffalo grass or Colorado bottom grass makes an excellent hay, but 
its growth is confined mainly to the southwestern part of the state. 
It comes up as a volunteer in the cornfield after the last plowing; 
is cut after the corn has been gathered, and is frequently more 
valuable than the corn crop ; but if put in a meadow alone at least 
2 cuttings or perhaps 3 can be obtained. We have had most excellent 
success with it at our Beeville station. In every part of the state 
sorghum is a valuable hay plant. A mixture of native grasses 
in the black prairie belt of the state, especially about Forney, fur- 
nishes a valuable hay. This is true also of the coast prairie belt 
from Beaumont to Victoria ; but south Texas hay is very much 
less valuable than the north Texas hay, from native grass. Prac- 
tically nothing has been done in this state in the way of fertilizing 
hay meadows, but what has been done leads clearly to the conclu- 
sion that cottonseed-meal scattered broadcast in the fall of the year, 
or late winter, will give most beneficial results — 300 to 500 pounds 
per acre. Texas is so large with a corresponding variation of soil and 
climate that it would be difficult within the limitations of a letter 
to give more explicit information. 

The most favorable grass for summer pasture that we have is Ber- 
muda, although alfalfa after it has been established two or three 



402 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

years and when it can be irrigated will stand rather heavy pasturage, 
and hogs and horses especially do remarkably well on it. I recently 
witnessed in the Toyah Valley 30 mares with foal running on 
alfalfa as an exclusive feed, and the mares were seal-fat, with udders 
like those of milk cows. For a winter pasture, bur clover is ex- 
cellent from Waco south in the rainbelt, for hogs and cattle. Horses 
eat it indifferently. Rescue grass in the early spring is excellent 
pasturage. In the northwestern part, especially where irrigation 
can be practiced, Kentucky bluegrass does well. 

Prof. H. Ness, Horticulturist of the Texas Agricultural Experi- 
ment Stations, College Station: I send you a list of a few impor- 
tant grasses with such extemporary notes and remarks as I can 
make in a very short time. Curly mesquite is found over the 
entire prairie district from Parker county west and south clear 
to the foothills of the Rocky Mountains. It grows to be about 
6" to 12" high ; is a runner, forming a dense sod. As pasture grass 
for the arid West this has no superior, inasmuch as it cures into 
the best of hay in a dry season, recovers itself and is succulent and 
green in a very few hours after a shower, and is exceedingly 
nutritious. Its power of resisting drouth is remarkable. The 
leaves may dry and curl; hence the name "curly", and the stems 
may dry until they burn as easy as hay, and are actually dead, 
but the joints preserve the vitahty very much after the manner 
of seeds, and are evidently store-houses of nutritive matter that 
readily become useful as propagators of the plants after a rain. 

Paspalum dilatatum, Poir, is found mostly in the eastern half and 
agricultural portion of Texas, especially on wet prairies, where it 
makes a quick growth very early in the season, continuing to grow 
until frost, so long as moisture is abundant. It is a perennial, but 
is not a runner. The stems are ascending and the foliage very 
heavy, with large, succulent leaves. This is one of the best pasture 
grasses and also meadow plants of eastern Texas. It is an especially 
good meadow plant where the land is too wet for ordinary crops. 

Carpet grass is found over the moister portion of the coast 
country clear to the Red River, throughout the forest belt of east 
Texas. It is common in low, wet, open places, and seems to 
delight especially in a compact, close soil. It starts growth very 
early in the spring and frequently remains in green and growing 
condition until Christmas, or until killed by severe frost. It is a 
runner and affords a sod so thick that no other grasses or weeds 



TEXAS GRASSES AND HAYS 403 

can readily get a good hold on the same ground. Like all other 
-grasses, however, it avoids shady places, yet it constitutes the 
principal native pasture plant, as well as meadow plant, for east 
Texas. This grass derives the name "carpet grass" from its carpet- 
like sod. Cattle relish it very much, even more than they do Ber- 
muda grass and very much more than they do Paspalum dilatatum. 

Buckley is called the "Colorado bottom grass" in Texas. It is an 
annual about 3' tall and is generally found throughout plowed 
ground over a large portion of middle Texas, especially the black 
land between the Colorado and Brazos Rivers. In this district it 
is highly prized as a hay plant, as it furnishes one of the most 
nutritious hays and very abundant yields. It readily reseeds itself, 
and starts its growth in June. It may readily be cut several times 
during the summer in the rainy season before the root is exhausted. 

Para grass is a very coarse but nutritious annual 3' to 
6' tall. It has especially taken hold of the alluvial irrigated lands 
of the western coast country. It is not very much cultivated in 
Texas due perhaps to the fact that the people are not well acquaint- 
ed with it, but in the Rio Grande Valley it speedily occupies all 
cultivated lands not continually plowed during the summer, giving 
immense crops of the very best hay. 

Boutcloua Oligostachya, is one of the many so-called "grama- 
grasses" of the western plains. It is a perennial and a bunch grass, 
but the bunches crowd each other so as to form almost a contin- 
uous sod. It is perhaps one of the most abundant and highly prized 
grasses of the cattle-raising belt, having the same quality of the 
grasses of the arid region, namely, curing into hay during 
the dry weather and speedily recovering its green and succulent 
nature after a shower. Besides this, there are several other species 
of Bouteloua, all highly valued by cattlemen, and nearly all cover- 
ing the same area; that is, the great plains west of the 100th meri-- 
dian. 

Buffalo grass is found in great abundance over the great prairies 
west of the so-called "cross timbers" in Texas. It is a low, compact 
growth, giving a patch of it the appearance of a well-cared-for lawn, 
inasmuch as the leaf shoots only reach the height of 4" to 6", but 
the herbage is abundant, as it is very dense. This grass besides 
being one of the most highly-prized pasture plants of Texas, is 
exceedingly suitable for lawn purposes. It has a vivid green color 
and even growth, which makes it superior for that purpose to 



404 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

Bermuda grass^ and also the fact that it is readily killed by 
cultivation. It can stand a great amount of tramping and drouth. 
In appearance it is similar to Bermuda grass, except that the leaves 
are more narrow, and the shoots of more even height. The two 
grasses can readily keep the same area without being one too strong 
for the other. The only difficulty with this grass is that it produces 
seed in such small quantities that its distribution and propagation 
are carried on by means of pieces of sod or runners. Otherwise, 
it would undoubtedly be preferred to Bermuda. It can also grow 
outside of the arid region. Here at College Station, with a rainfall 
of 36" annually, I have found dense patches of it holding its own 
against the other grasses, 

Utah. — Prof. Lewis A. Merrill, Director of the Utah Experiment 
Station, Salt Lake City : In recent years we have found that brome 
grass is the very best grass we can grow on our arid lands. It was 
introduced in the state some 12 years ago, and its growth has been 
gradually extended until now there are thousands of acres of land 
lying above the irrigation canal seeded to brome grass. We find 
that it is absolutely essential to get a good seedbed before seeding. 
If we attempt to seed it on the barren hillsides without preparation 
of a proper seedbed the result is a failure. However, where the 
seedbed is properly prepared and the seed drilled in at the rate 
of 12 to 15 pounds per acre we get an excellent stand. The grass 
yields when cut for hay from Ij/^ to 2^ tons per acre. It makes 
a splendid aftermath, and thus makes a very profitable growth for 
cheap lands. We have tried a large number of grasses on these arid 
lands, including Agropyron spicatum, Elymus triticoides, Elymus 
condensatus ; also orchard grass, tall meadow oatgrass, and perennial 
ryegrass. None of these has given satisfaction. They have not 
made a good stand, and after six years' experimental work with 
these varieties on arid lands we have come to the conclusion that 
brome grass is practically the only one of the list that we can 
recommend to our farmers for arid lands. We have tried brome 
under irrigation, but we prefer some other grasses under these 
conditions. 

For a pasture grass under irrigation we have found none that 
begins to equal in importance Kentucky bluegrass. It stands at the 
head of the list as a single grass for pasture under irrigation. As a 
second choice under irrigation, I would place brome grass. I am 



GRASSES IN UTAH 405 

free to say, however, that in my opinion we would make a very 
serious mistake, on our irrigated lands, if we confined ourselves to 
one or two grasses. For our benchlands under irrigation I would 
recommend the following mixture : Kentucky blue grass, 6 pounds ; 
meadow fescue, 3 pounds ; perennial ryegrass, 7 pounds ; red clover, 
2 pounds ; redtop, 6 pounds ; orchard grass, 3 pounds ; white clover, 
2 pounds; lucern, 2 pounds. This mixture is used on our experi- 
ment station pasture. 

For light sandy soil under irrigation I would use the following 
mixture: Kentucky bluegrass, 8 pounds; meadow fescue, 16 pounds; 
tall meadow oatgrass, 5 pounds ; Bromus inermis, 5 pounds ; white 
clover, 2 pounds. For our low moist lands we have found the 
following mixture gives excellent results : Perennial ryegrass, 8 
pounds ; redtop, 10 pounds ; Rhode Island bed grass, 4 pounds ; 
meadow fescue, 2 pounds ; timothy, 2 pounds ; alsike clover, 5 
pounds ; white clover, 2 pounds. 

Of course for meadow the crop mainly grown here is timothy 
and clover. Hay from meadows of this kind sells at from $10 
to $12 per ton, while alfalfa in good condition sells at $5 to $6 
per ton. I think this is a mistake, but it is the practice here. I much 
prefer a ton of alfalfa for feed to any of the domestic animals to 
a ton of timothy or redtop. A number of our farmers make a prac- 
tice of seeding orchard grass with alfalfa, since orchard grass 
matures about at the same time, and it is claimed that because 
it dries so readily it absorbs part of the moisture from the alfalfa 
and enables them to put it into mounds greener than if the alfalfa 
is sown alone. We have found it a very desirable practice to cover 
our pastures with well-rotted barnyard manure at the rate of about 
15 tons per acre once in three years. The manuring is done during 
the winter season, and in the spring a sharptoothed harrow is run 
over the ground two or three times, scratching the surface very 
thoroughly. 

We find it necessary about once in three years to reseed, and 
this is done after the harrowing, and just before the spring rains 
begin. Our alfalfa fields can be renewed and kept in splendid con- 
dition by the use of the disk harrow. The field is thoroughly 
disked and cross-disked along in February or March, and the prac- 
tice of disking again after the removal of the first crop is gaining 
many advocates. During the past few years there has been intro- 
duced in this state a pest to the alfalfa crop, the alfalfa weevil. 



406 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

Our entomologist recommends the disking of alfalfa fields after the 
removal of each crop in order to exterminate the insect. The 
practice has been found effective in destroying the insect and has 
also resulted in renewing the fields in a splendid way. 

Washington. — Prof. R. W. Thatcher, Director of the Washing- 
ton Experiment Station, Pullman: Alfalfa is the leading hay plant 
in all our warmer irrigated belts that are not used strictly for fruit- 
growing or vegetable-gardening. It is also becoming more and 
more prominent in the southeastern part of our state for both a 
pasture and a hay plant for hogs and what few cattle our wheat- 
farmers may keep. It is just beginning to be grown in the western 
part of Washington and enough has been done to show that all that 
part of our state seems to need inoculation for alfalfa, but that it 
will do well on any of the well-drained soils of western Washington 
if such inoculation is given. I believe that it will become a very 
prominent hay and pasture plant in western Washington. Nothing 
has been done thus far in the matter of fertilizing for alfalfa. The 
usual practice is to seed without a nurse-crop. 

Clover is a very important forage plant in western Washington, 
and is just beginning to be grown to a very limited degree in the 
easternmost part of the wheatbelt where the rainfall is above 20" 
per annum. At Pullman our trials on the experiment station have 
shown clover to be as valuable as alfalfa in short rotations, as the 
yield has been about equal to that of alfalfa and it is got rid of by 
plowing while alfalfa requires persistent cultivation before it is con- 
quered. To secure a stand of clover with certainty in eastern 
Washington, however, it is necessary to prepare the seedbed in the 
spring in such a way that a good, firm bottom will be secured 
with a shallow, mellow surface mulch, then seed with an ordinary 
grain drill, slipping the spouts of the drill from the grain box onto 
the grass seedbox conducting the clover seed into the shoes of the 
drill, then setting the shoes to run shallow. In this way the seed 
is placed where the little seedling will not be destroyed with one or 
two hot drying days. Seeded in this manner we find no more diffi- 
culty in securing a stand of clover than of oats. With the frequent 
rains that occur in the early part of the season in western Wash- 
ington such special pains are not necessary in seeding. 

Alsike clover is useful in our state in very Hmited acreages 
where the drainage is poor or the land is subject to overflow the 



GRASSES IN WISCONSIN 407 

early part of the season. Timothy is grown quite exclusively along 
the streams close ta the mountains in both the eastern and western 
part of our state. This grass is used very largely for hay. In 
Kittitas Valley irrigated land is largely used for this purpose. With 
easy transportation to a good market like Seattle the better farmers 
in Kittitas Valley are able to secure some seasons nearly $100 an 
acre grogs receipts from their timothy hay. It is grown to some 
extent in western Washington, though certain other grasses are 
grown in western Washington more proportionately than in like 
latitude in any other^part of the United States. 

For pasture, our best grass is orchard grass, which is grown prin- 
cipally in the western part of the state, but it is being mixed with 
alfalfa by a few farmers in our irrigated belt in order to overcome 
the danger of bloat in live stock when used for pasture. 

Italian and English ryegrasses are grown to a considerable extent 
in western Washington for pasture purposes, but are of no value 
in any other part of the state. Tall oatgrass has been found to do 
fairly well in the lighter lands of western Washington, but it 
matures too early to make a good hay plant in that section because 
the rains are so frequent up to July that hay harvest is very 
uncertain. 

Wisconsin. — Prof. A. L. Stone of the Department of Agronomy, 
Wisconsin College of Agriculture, Madison : There are only three 
or four grasses of real importance in Wisconsin. We have a large 
number of grasses, both cultivated and native, and many are valu- 
able agriculturally. But for pastures and m.eadows there are but 
three or four which are in common use. We consider Kentucky 
bluegrass by far the best grass which we have for pasture. While 
it does not equal some other grasses, like brome or meadow 
fescue, for mstance, in yields, it proves to be the best pasture grass 
for all conditions. In our best pasture we have a mixture of Ken- 
tucky bluegrass and white and alsike clovers, using but a very little 
however, of the alsike. On our lower soils we use some Kentucky 
bluegrass, a larger amount of redtop, white and alsike clovers. 
We find that the redtop gives better satisfaction on the low soil than 
the Kentucky bluegrass, though a mixture of the two gives very 
good satisfaction. 

In the order of their merit, I should say that the four best grasses 
would be Kentucky bluegrass, redtop, brome grass and either 



408 MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

orchard grass or meadow fescue. For highlands, we would use 
a mixture of Kentucky bluegrass and white clover; for lowland 
Kentucky bluegrass, white and alsike clovers and redtop. For 
meadows we use timothy, either alone or a mixture of timothy and 
red clover for the higher ground, timothy and alsike clover for the 
lower ground. 

In establishing bluegrass pastures, it is customary for our farmers 
to sow a mixture of timothy, redtop, Kentucky bluegrass, and white 
clover. This gives an opportunity to get at least two crops of hay 
from the timothy and clover, and by the time the timothy and 
clover are gone we get a fair sod of Kentucky bluegrass, and get a 
crop which may then be pastured. Ordinarily the mixture for this 
purpose would be about 15 pounds of timothy, 8 pounds of red 
clover, 10 pounds of Kentucky bluegrass and 2 pounds of white 
clover. This mixture for meadows would be changed somewhat 
in regard to the soil, using alsike clover and possibly redtop and 
Canada bluegrass in place of Kentucky bluegrass on low wet ground. 

Since brome grass has become popular many of our farmers are 
mixing some of it and also more or less redtop in all pasture seeding. 
In this way they get grasses which are inclined to mature at different 
times of the year, and so obtain a continuous pasture. 

Medium red clover is the most popular of any of the clovers 
grown in the state. Alfalfa where it does well is crowding out even 
the red clover. Thus far we have found very few sections of the state, 
however, where alfalfa has given very good satisfaction. The area 
devoted to this plant, however, is rapidly increasing, as we come to 
better understand the methods of handling it. Besides growing the 
alfalfa by itself, many of our farmers have adopted the plan of 
mixing in more or less alfalfa seed in their timothy and clover 
seedings, thus getting some alfalfa in all the hay grown on the 
farm. This not only adds to the palatability of the hay, but 
assists in establishing the bacteria in the soil. Next to these two 
alsike clover is perhaps next in popularity and importance. It grows 
especially well in Wisconsin, and is used to a very large extent as 
an addition to our meadow mixtures. Next in order would 
undoubtedly be the mammoth clover. All of these give fairly good 
satisfaction, though the mammoth clover is slightly too coarse for 
the best grade of forage. 

Few farmers in Wisconsin have yet resorted to the use of com- 
mercial fertilizers. We have advocated the use of barnyard manure 



HAWAIIAN GRASS CROPS 409 

and the rotation of crops to preserve the fertility of the soil, and 
discouraged the use of commercial fertilizers. The programme for 
the ordinary farmer is as follows : The whole pasture is given a 
good coating of barnyard manure usually with a manure spreader, 
thus dropping the manure evenly. This is plowed down and corn 
planted the next year. Corn is followed by one year of grain, 
either oats or barley, and the field is seeded to timothy, red clover, 
Kentucky bluegrass, white clover, in the proportions already men- 
tioned. The next year hay is cut, depending on circumstances. 
The field is either left for hay the second year, or is turned into 
pasture. Ordinarily the farmer runs it two years to hay, and then 
one year to pasture, depending on the rotation of crops adopted. 
We have found that by this system we have been able to get very 
satisfactory crops of grain and hay. Nothing other than the ap- 
plication of barnyard manure and the change of crops has thus 
far been done to increase the yield of clover in this state. 

Hawaii. — Prof. F. G. Krauss, in charge of Rice and Cotton 
Investigations, Hawaii Experiment Station, Honolulu : Bermuda is 
a valuable pasture grass, thriving throughout the Hawaiian group. 
It is very drouth-resistant, spreads rapidly, and is difficult to eradi- 
cate. It responds wonderfully to irrigation and tillage, is rarely 
fertilized; but results from cattle droppings in pastures suggest that 
manuring would pay well. It is rarely used as a soiling crop, but 
lawn mowings of this grass are commonly fed to family horses and 
cows with good results. 

Para grass is extensively planted by dairymen throughout Hawaii, 
and is considered a nutritious feed for both cows and horses. 
Under irrigation it yields 4 crops in 12 months. The writer has 
made weighings from fertilized plots averaging 20 tons of green 
fodder per acre, per single cutting. The crop is planted from 
cuttings of the mature stems, which are long, close-jointed trailers. 
Furrows are plowed 18" to 36" apart and the cuttings a foot long 
set a few inches apart in the furrow, which is then partly filled 
in and then irrigated. Often yields are obtained when the plants 
are a 3'ear old. Fields require renewing, or at least plowing once 
in five years or so. It is principally used as a soiling crop and 
should not be permitted to get too old to avoid woodiness. 

Water grass is a valuable Australian "bunch" grass gradually 
meeting with the recognition it deserves. Imported seed germinates 



410 MEADOWS AND PAS^'URES 

poorly. It makes great dense clumps of tender nutritious forage or 
fodder greedily eaten by all kinds of live stock. It responds well to 
irrigation and fertilization. The clumps may be divided and replant- 
ed, such renewal being advisable every three or five years. W|^n 
well established in pastures it spreads through natural seed distri- 
bution. 

Rhodes grass, a comparatively recently introduced grass, is meet- 
ing with high praise from all who have tried it. It is very drouth- 
resistant and yields a nutritious grass, which may be cured for hay. 
It pastures well or may be used for soiling. Horses, cattle and 
sheep relish and thrive on it. It spreads naturally from seed, 
or may be propagated by root division. 

Buffalo grass is another valuable introduced pasture grass. It 
produces a rather dwarf growth, but a very dense matting not easily 
* destroyed when once established. It is propagated by root or 
stem divisions as well as by seed, 

Guinea grass is a dense, coarse, upright bunch grass, attaining 
a height of 4' to 6', relished by stock when young and tender, but 
becoming harsh with maturity it has more limited use than the 
other sorts mentioned. It is very hardy against adverse conditions, 
and finds favor on that account. 

Many grasses especially suited for range pastures have been 
introduced into Hawaii during the past dozen years, but the 
writer is not familiar with their conditions. In a general way 
I have understood that the peas, bent grasses, bromes, gramas, fes- 
tucas and rye grasses have become more or less established through- 
out the group. 

Alfalfa is practically the only "clover" grown in Hawaii. It 
thrives luxuriantly under favorable conditions and yields 10 to 12 
cuttings annually. Its culture is continually being extended and 
bids fair to become the leading fodder where conditions are favor- 
able for its growth. 

England. — James Peter, Estate Agent, Berkeley Castle, Berkeley: 
As to pasture management, for fertilizers nothing can beat basic 
slag for improving the herbage and giving a quick return. It is 
marvelous the result it has on our cold clay soils with a dressing 
of 5 and 6 cwts. to the acre. Farmyard manure well made is the 
most complete " manure of all others, but any kind of j*dressing 
if ^1^' fresh earth, will do pasture land good. Ditch cleatiings and 



ENGLISH PASTURE WORK 411 

pond scrapings mixed with lime in a composite heap makes a fine 
dressing for pasture land. Ground bones of 4 cwt. to the acre is 
a dressing that should be appHed to all grazing pasture land once 
in 7 years. All pastures should be well harrowed in the winter to 
remove the moss that grows in the bottom; the harrow helps to 
stimulate the grass roots. 



INDEX. 



Absorption, by roots, IS. 

Acid phosphate, with manure, 34. 

Aftermath, not pastured, 29. 

too heavy, 39. 
Agropyrum repens. (See Quack- 
grass. ) 
Agrostis alba. (See redtop. ) 
Alabama, 353. 
Alfalfa, 212. 

brome grass with, 110. 

care of, 229. 

cuttings, 2 42. 

feeding excess, 24. 

fertilizer for, 229. 

hay, 235. 

history of, 214. 

irrigation for, 246. 

life of, 244. 

mowing, 234. 

on Johnson grass land, 66. 

pasture for sheep, 349. 

seedbed for, 232. 

seed drill, 229. 

seeding of, 230. 

spring sowing, 228. 

spring and summer seeding, 224. 

varieties of, 245. 

with bluegrass, S8. 

with orchard grass, 108. 

with timothy, 30. 
Alopecurus pratensis, 248. 
Alsike clovei', compared with red, 
155. 

effect on cattle. 167. 

likeness to redtop, 106. 
Amropyron divergens, 7 5. 
Annual grasses, for hay, 68. 
Arabian millet, 62. 
Arkansas, 355. 
Arrhenatherum clatius, 60. 
Artemesia, 328. 
Azotobacter, 20, 147. 

Bacteria, conditions favoring, 141. 

in old sod, 20. 

on legumes, 135. 
Basic slag, experiments with, 310. 

on pastures, 273, 301. 
Barley, nurse crop for alfalfa, 228. 
Beardless spring barley, as hay, 

70. 
Beggarweed, 364. 
Bermuda grass, 3 53, 360. 

choice of land for, 118. 

climate for, 114. 

eradication of, 117. 

history of, 118. 

In the south, 116. 

method of planting, 122. 



on poor soils. 115. 

preparation of soil for, 121. 

propagation of, 112. 

stem of, 22. 

with bur clover, 20. 
Black locust, in pasture, 323. 
Bloating, 351. 
Bluegrass, advantages of, 84. 

and cowpeas, 2 76. 

disadvantages of, 85. 

for lawns, 84. 

how came to Ohio, 92. 

how to distinguish from Canada. 
104. 

how to seed, 88. 89. 

in limestone regions, «0. 

in timothv, 29. 

mixture with. 2 83. 

securing maximum yield, 91. 

seeding of, 85. 

stem of, 22. 

summarv, 99. 

with alfalfa, 88. 

with brome grass, 86. 

with orchard grass, 91. 

Bluejoint, 248, 16. 

Bluestem, 7 5. 

Bonemeal, for stock, 271. 

with salt, 351. 
Boss, Andrew, 377. 
Boutelona oligostachya, 403. 
Bridging pasture, timothy, 41. 
Brome grass, 73. 

care of pasture. 111. 

compared with orchara grass, 
107. 

drouth-resisting power of, 109. 

for animals, 109. 

how to sow, 52. 

mixture with, 283. 

north of Ohio River, 17. 

not mix with orchard, 49. 

seeding of, 110. 

stem of, 22. 

value of, 50. 

when to cut, 52. 

with bluegrass, 86. 
Bromus inermis. (See brome 

grass. ) 
Bromus unoiloides, 70. 
Brooks, William P., 388. 
Broom corn millets, 71. 
Bulbs, of timothy, 29. 
Bull thistle, 330. 
Bunch grass, 16. 
Bur clover, 354, 364, 174. 

with Bermuda grass, 20. 
Burnett, E. A., 389. 



(413) 



414 



INDEX 



Calamagrostii! Canadensis. (See 

BJuejoint. ) 
Calvin, Martin V., 366. 
Canada bluegrass, 100. 

as lawn grass, 103. 

liow to distinguish from 

■■ Kentucky, 104. V 

in timothy, 29. ' 

mixture with, 283- 

quantity of see4 to sow, 103. 

with orchard grass, 108. 
Canada thistles, 329. 
Canary grass, seeding of, 17. 
Capriola dactylon. (See Bermuda 

.. grass.) 
Carbonate of lime, 2 58. 

and legume growing, 142. 

for sweetening soil, 36. 
Carnation clover, 167. 
Carpet grass, 124, 353. 
Cattlq. bloat, 152. 

pastured, 350. 
Center, O. D., 367. 
Cereals for hay, time to cut, 68. 
Chaetolhloa italica, 71. 
Chemicals for soils, 275. 
Clay soils, fertilization of, 302. 
Clinton, L. A., 383. 
Clovers, 149. 

care of when young, 292. 

fed close, 22. 

for feeding, 164. 

grown with grasses, 19. 

needing inoculation, 139. 

seeding in spring, 288. 

sown with spring crop. 158. 

wheat and timothy, 32. 

with orchard grass, 108. 

with timothy, 30. 

with timothy in wheat, 159. 
Clover dodder, 162. 
Clover hay, making of, 161. 
Clover mixtures, sowing of, 160. 
Clover seed, growing of, 162. 

with dodder, 164. 
Clover-sick land, 166. 
Cockleburs, 328. 
Colts, fed on pasture, 350. 
Connecticut, 383. 
Corn, and cowpeas, 200. 
Cornbelt, grasses for, 73. 
Corn crop, after timothy, 303. 
Cotton, displaced by Japan clover, 

190. 
Cotton cake, 314. 
Cowpeas, 195, 354. 

and bluegrass, 276. 

with crimson clover, 173. 
Crabgrass, 364. 
Crimson clover, 167, 355. 

as regenerator, 172. 

climate and soil for, 169. 

how to feed, 170. 

sowing of, 171. 

with cowpeas, 173. 
Crops, effect of previous cuttings, 
28. 



Curing green grain, 28. 

Dairy cows, timothy unsuited, 25. 

Daisy, 331. 

Danthonia spicata, 60. 

Delaware, 357. 

Dissolved bones, experiments with, 

310. 
Dock, 330. 
Dodder, 162. 
Drainage, depth, 257. 

for poor lands, 256. 

of grasslands, 18. 
Drouth, and drainage, 258. 
Dry farming, grasses for, 74. 
Dry weather crops, millets, 71. 
Duggar, J. F., 353. 
Dutch clover, 150. 

Early cutting of timothy, 28. 
Earthworms, indicate kind "of soil, 

221. 
Egyptian millet, 62. 
England, 410. 
English bluegrass. (See meadow 

fescues. ) 
Erigeron annuus. (See White 

top.) 
Ernst, William, 391. 
Esparcette, 190. 
Experiments with grass at home, 

105. 
Export cattle, on bluegrass, 92. 

Feed, danger in alfalfa, 25. 
Feeding on pastures, 294. 
Feeding pastures, 300. 
Ferns, 331. 
Fertilization, diversity of, 301. 

summary, 322. 
Fertilizers, on timothy meadows, 

34. 
Fescue. (See sheep fescue. > 
Festuca elatior. (See fescue 

grasses. 
Festuca pratensis. (See meadow 

fescue. ) 
Fieldmice, in aftermath, 39. 
Field pea, 192. 
Floats, with manure, 34. 
Florida, 358. 
Forage, of winter wheat, 69. 

yields of, 45. 
Fowl Meadowgrass, 250. 
Furze, 333. 

Georgia, 366. 

Glycine hispida, 204. 

Gorse, 333. 

Gramineae. ( See Grasses. ) 

Grass, bunch, 16. 

manner of growth, 22. 

mixtures, 283. 

seeding of, 280. 

where most profitable, 279. 



INDEX 



415 



Grasses, care of when young, 292. 

characterization of, 15. 

for pasture, 75. 

grown with clover, 19. 

how they feed, 17. 

number of species, 15. 

on peaty soils, 297. 

time to seed, 282. 

with legumes, 148. 
Grasslands, drainage of, 18. 
Grazing, effect on grasses, 293, 
Ground lime, 310, 36. 
Guinea grass, 67, 410. 
Gulf States, grasses for, 74. 

Hairy vetch, 183, 354. 
Harper, J. N., 397. 
Harrington, H. H., 400. 
Harvesting, future effect of, 28. 
Hay, feeding value of alfalfa, 238. 

from cereals, 68. 

from winter wheat, 69. 

timothy, 16, 20, 23. 
Haj^oaders. 236. 
Hawaii, 409. 
Herbage, effects of manure on, 

304. 
Hoarhound, 329. 
Horse breeding, 334. 
Horse manure, on pastures, 299. 
Horse nettle, 329. 
Horses, effect of alfalfa, 2 5. 

on Canada bluegrass, 102. 
Horseweeds, 329. 
Hurdling system, 338. 
Hutchinson, W. L., 378. 

Illinois, 367. 
Indiana, 370. 
Inoculation, for alfalfa, 224. 

methods of, 138. 

of soils, 137. 

of soybeans. 208. 
Iron weeds, 329. 
Irrigation, for alfalfa. 246. 
Italian rye grass, 56. 

Japan clover, 188. 
Japanese sugarcane, 360. 
Jenkins, E. H., 383. 
Jimpson weed, 329. 
Johnson grass, 62. 
how to eradicate, 65. 

Kansas. 371. 

Kentucky Bluegrass. (See blue- 
grass.) 
Kilgore, B. W., 398. 
Knots, 347. 
Krauss, F. G., 409. 

Lambs, fed on pasture, 348. 
Lawns, of bluegrass, 84. 
Legumes, 133. 

effect on soil, 149. 

number of species, 14. 

purpose of, 146, 135. 



value of, 147. 

with grasses, 148. 
Lespedeza striata, 188, 354. 
Letters from Experiment Stations. 

352. 
Lime, effect on milkers, 268. 

experiments with, 310. 

on new grass land, 282. 

on pastures, 267. 

test for, 220. 

where needed, 219. 

with salt, 351. 
Linfield, F. B., 388. 
Locust trees, 333. 
Lolium, 56. 
Lucerne. (See alfalfa.) 

Mammoth clover, 152, 160. 
Manure, how it acts on soil, 275. 

on timothy meadows, 34. 

waste of under trees, 324. 
Manured grass, relished by ani= 

mals, 298. 
Manuring, new grass land, 282. 

old land hayfield, 306. 
Massachusetts, 388. 
Meadow, life of a timothy, 40. 

top-dressing of, 359. 
Meadow fescue, in meadow mix- 
tures, 55. 

mixture with, 283. 

soil for. 111. 

value of, 53. 

with orchard grass, 108. 
Meadow foxtail, 248. 
Meadow mouse, in timothy, 40. 
Meadows, and havland, 368. 

care of, 252, 369, 293. 

feeding of timothy, 33. 

of alfalfa, 234. 
Means' grass, 62. 
Medicago lupulina, 182. 

maculata, 174. 

obiculata, 175. 
Melilotus alba, 177. 
Merrill, Lewis A., 404. 
Mice, remedies for, 40. 
Michigan, 377. 

Middle West, wants of, 332. 
Milk, and lime, 268. 
Millets, 70. 

Mineral manures, on pastures, 297. 
Minnesota, 377. 
Mississippi, 378. 
Missouri, 379. 

Mixture, for poorly-drained land, 
368. 

for poor soil. 368. 

for well-drained land, 367. 

with timothy, 32. 
Mixtures of grasses, advantages 

of, 284. 
Moisture, and grass production, 

276. 
Montana, 388. 
Moorhouse, L. A., 382. 
Mosses, 331. 



416 



INDEX 



Mowing, tall oat grass, 62. 

millet, 72. 

time for brome grass, 52. 

timothy, 25. 
Mowing lands, top-dressing of, 37. 
Mucuna utilis, 202. 
Muhlenbergia diffusa. (See Nim- 
ble-will.) 
Mulleins, 329. 

Natal grass, 366. 

Nebraska, 389. 

Nelson, Aven, 400. 

Nelson, Martin, 355. 

Ness, H., 402. 

Nettle, 329. 

New Hampshire, 383. 

New York, 385. 

Nimblewill, 130. 

Nitrate of soda, for timothy, 38. 

Nitrifying bacteria, aided by 

humus, 146. 
Nitrogen, how secured by legumes, 
135. 

in soil, effect of manure, 304. 

supply of, 144. 
Nodular disease, 300, 347. 
North Carolina, 398. 
North Dakota, 394. 
Nurse crop, seeding grass with, 
287. 

Ohio, 394. 
Oklahoma, 382. 
Onobrychis sativa, 190. 
Orchard grass, 73, 353. 

desirability and requirements of, 
107. 

for animals, 107. 

for cattle, 48. 

mixture, 108, 283. 

not mix with brome, 49. 

quantity of seed to sow, 108. 

with bluegrass, 91. 

yield of, 46. 
Oregon, 395. 

Panicum maximum, 67. 

molle, 67. 
Para grass, 358, 67. 
Parasites, in sheep manure, 300. 

of sheep, 342. 

in pastures, 327. 
Paspalum, 124. 

Pastures, care of, 252, 293, 323, 
369. 

early stocking of, 325. 

effect of trees on, 323. 

feeding on, 294. 

for sheep, 341. 

grasses for, 75. 

improvement in England, 309. 

manure for, 297, 310. 

manure on, 21. 

mixed stocking of, 299. 

of orchard grass, 108. 

of alfalfa, 240. 

productivity of, 20. 



retaining moisture, 326. 

rotation of stock in, 32*7. 

sodbound, 21. 

sweetened with lime, 267. 

timothy, 39. 

weeds in, 328. 
Pasturing, cattle, 350. 

effects of early, 91. 
Pearl millet, 71. 
Pennisetum spicatum, 71. 
Percherons, on limed pastures, 

270. 
Permanent meadow, of timothy, 

29. 
Permanent pastures, effect of 
nianure on, 296. 

sheep on, 340. 
Persimmons, 333. 
Peter, James, 410. 
Phosphatic rock, with manure, 34. 
Phosphorus, as fertilizer, 302. 

in soils, 297. 
Pighead, 299. 
Pigs, glean field, 206. 
Pisum sativum, 192. 
Plantain, 331. 
Plant food, mineral, 18. 
Plowing, for new grass land, 281. 
Poa archnifera, 124. 

compressa. (See Canada blue- 
grass. ) 

praetensis. (See Kentucky blue- 
grass. ) 

serontina, 250. 
Poison ivy, 329. 
Poor soil, grasses for, 106, 283. 

sheep fescue for, 112. 
Potassium, in soils, 297. 

Quackgrass, eradication of, 129, 
132. 
establishment of, 126. 
method of rooting, 16. 
roots of, 22. 

Ragweed, 328. 

Rank growing spots in pasture, 

328. 
Red clover, 152. 

diseases of, 166. 

habit of growth, 154. 

quantity to sow, 157. 

seeding of, 156. 

summary of. 165. 

with timothy, 20. 
Redtop. 353. 

adaptability of, 44, 105. 

characteristics of, 104. 

how to displace, 44. 

in mixtures, 106. 

in timothy, 29. 

leaves sweetened soil, 36. 

mixture with, 283. 

seeding to, 106. 

soil for, 42. 

sowing of, 46. 

stem of, 22. 

with orchard grass, 108. 



INDEX 



417 



Rescue grass, 70. 

Rhodes grass, 410. 

Rhode Island, 396. 

Rohde, Carl, 391. 

Roller, use of on grass, 291. 

Root, method of growth, 18. 

Rooting, of quackgrass, 16. 

Rotation of crops, natural, 146. 

Rotation of stock, 327. 

Ryegrass, 65, 60. 

Rye hay, 69. 

Sainfoin, 190. 

Salt, given on pasture, 351. 
Scarlet clover. 167. 
Scott, John M., 358. 
Seeds, adulterated, 156. 

amount per acre, 285. 
Seeding grass, 2S6. 
Seedlings, protection of, 2 86. 
Shade in pastures, 323. 
Shaw, R. S., 377. 
Sheep bloat, 152. 
Sheep, hard on timothy, 40. 

on alfalfa pasture, 349. 

timothy unsuited, 25. 

tobacco to, 341. 

to eat whitetop, 40. 
Sheep fescue, 17, 56. 
Sheep pastures, not sheep 

manured, 300. 
Shepperd, J. H., 394. 

Sodbound pastures, 21. 64. 
Soil, for alfalfa. 216. 220. 

enriched in nitrogen, 141. 

for meadow, 2 53. 

judged by grass, 102. 

liked by red clover, 156. 

poverty revealed by redtop, 30. 
Soiling crop, alfalfa, 241. 

rye and vetch mixture, 188. 

rye as, 70. 
Soil nitrogen, effect of manure on, 

304. 
South Carolina, 397. 
Soybeans, 204, 355. 

compared with cowpeas, 202, 
210. 

inoculation of, 140. 

with corn, 200. 
Sparrowhawks, for mice, 40. 
Spearmint, 329. 
Spring crop, with clover, 158. 
St. Augustine grass. 126. 
Steers, on pasture, 352. 

wintered on hay, 26. 
Stenotaphrum dimideaton, 126. 
Stocking of pastures, 299. 
Stomach worms, 340. 
Stone, A. L., 407. 
Stooling, 15, 22. 
Sugar cane, infested with Johnson 

grass, 64. 
Sulphate of ammonia, 310. 
Sulphate of potash, 310. 
Sunburned grain, 28. 



Sunburned grass, 278. 
Superphosphate, 310. 
Sweet clover, 177. 

establishing of, 181. 

in alfalfa, 180. 

use of, 181. 
Sweetening soil, 36. 
Swine in alfalfa, 240. 
Syrian grass, 62. 

Tall oatgrass, 60. 
Taylor, F. W., 383. 
Temporary pasture, 42. 
Ten Eyck, A. M., 371. 
Tethering, 337. 
Texas, 400. 
Texas bluegrass, 124. 
Thatcher, R. W., 406. 
Thistles, 330. 
Thorne, Charles E., 394. 
Timothy, amount of hay from, 
285. 

effect of early cutting, 28. 

for feeding, 23, 164. 

fertilization of, 303. 

how close to cut, 40. 

injured by mice, 40. 

in the North, 16. 

life of, 41. 

manner of growth, 29. 

method of sowing, 31. 

mixtures, 32, 283. 

sown alone, 33. 

time of cutting, 2 5. 

with alfalfa, 30. 

with clover, 20. 

with clover and wheat, 159. 

worth of, 73. 
Tobacco fed to sheep, 341. 
Top-dressing, effect of, 359. 

with manure, 34. 
Tree field experiments, 310. 
Tricholaena rosea, 366. 
Trifolium. (See white clover.) 

hybridum, 166. 

incarnatum, see Crimson clover. 

Utah, 404. 

Vegetable matter in soil, 274, 
Velvet beans. 202, 360. 
Vetches, for forage, 69. 

needing inoculation, 140. 
Vicia villosa, 183. 
Vigna sinensis, 195. 

Warren, G. F., 385. 

Washington, 406. 

Water meadows, 2 78. 

Waters, H. J., 379. 

Weeds, effect of fertilization, 36. 

effect on Bermuda grass, 116. 
Wheat, clover and timothy, 32, 
159. 

hay, 61. 

in timothy, 40. 

stems from seed, 15. 

with peas, 194. 



418 INDEX 



Wheeler, H. J., 396. Wiregrass, 358. 

White, Paul J., 385. Wisconsin, 407. 

White clover, 150. Withycombe, James, 395. 

with Bermuda grass, 116. Wyoming, 400. 
Wiancko, A. T., 370. 

Wild oatgrass, 60. Yarrow, 330. 

Winter wheat, for forage, 69. Yellow trefoil, 182. 



Alfalfa in America 

By Joseph E. W^ing 



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Sheep Farming 
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Joseph E, "Wing 



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